Beast Wars: REBIRTH Volume One
by Jaggid
Summary: This is my alternative spin-off to Beast Wars. Forget Beast Machines! I give you Beast Wars REBIRTH! Optimus Primal and his crew return to Earth after 3 years to recover their lost stasis pods, only to discover that things have changed...
1. Rebirth

**BEAST  
WARS**

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 1: REBIRTH**

Optimus Primal was sitting in the custom-made command chair (built for him because of his size) in the control centre of their new ship. It was certainly not like the Axalon. Probably because they had lived in it for so ling during the Beast Wars, the Axalon became home.

Cheetor was certainly unhappy about his quarters, which were big but grey and empty, but by now the cat had matured and kept quiet about it. Primal respected that. Rattrap however, in his usual irritable manner was complaining out loud about the new controls being too confusing, and that the chairs didn't spin when he wanted them to.

_i I suppose everyone misses the Axalon_/i thought Optimus. Rhinox, on the other hand, was thrilled with the latest instalments of light-weight and more fluid technology at his disposal. His rhino beast form gave him even more strength, but after a while a 'bot gets tired of doing all the heavy lifting.

Rattrap could hardly believe that he was on this slagging mission. After that strenuous three years on Earth, why on Cybertron were they going back? Sure, to recover stasis pods and check up on the Autobots, but he had been looking forward to an early retirement from espionage and exploration and buy a nifty little shack on the outskirts of Chrome County.

Until he was sucked back into the black hole of Optimus' guilt-tripping speeches of 'We're a team, Rattrap. We'll always be a team' yada yada yada i …_It's always me…_ /i "And why aren't the others coming with us?" he heard himself blurt out,

"What 'bout bird-dog and webs? What're they doing that's do important they couldn't risk their mudguards to come with us?"

"Because, Rattrap, it only takes a few troops to perform a routine check of the planet." Replied Optimus, calmly. But Rattrap cut across him before the steel gorilla could continue.

"Waddya mean routine? This is the first 'routine' mission back to that dirt ball, and how do we know this hunk-a-new-junk is even gonna get us there and back?" He was starting to sound hysterical, and they all understood. Last time they went through that anomaly they were intercepted by a group of rebel Predacons on the prototype ship Darksyde, crash-landed on an unknown-at-the-time planet, and began the Beast Wars.

Granted, the Warpship Hercules was the most advanced craft ever built for inter-dimensional travel, and it had been tested in the most sophisticated simulation chambers known in the galaxy. But the former Axalon crew knew better than any of the top scientists in Cybertropolis that anomalies such as the space/time warp they had travelled through were too unpredictable, even for science and probability.

For a while, Optimus said nothing. Then at his next thought he huffed. Silverbolt had been made head of security at Cybertropolis Maximum Security Correction Centre (CMSC for short. 'Bots didn't bother with the last 'C'), while Blackarachnia had been made chief interrogator for the questioning of Megatron (funny, being a former Pred herself), who was placed in the highest security vault. So those two couldn't come either. Besides, Optimus believed they would have been reluctant to join them, especially the former Predacon.

Then he turned to Rhinox and said, "Well, Rhinox, as the humans say: full speed ahead!" And at that, Rhinox engaged the hyper drive; Cheetor initiated the thrusters to full power; and Rattrap converted the transwarp drive to the engines. Within seconds, they reached their destination to find that familiar wormhole, and they were stretched like rubber through it…

-------

On Cybertron, CMSC HQ was operating at maximum security. Surveillance cameras were placed all over the site, with guard 'bots placed at every entrance and exit of the premises. They all looked very solemn and miserable, but that was probably because they were guarding the cells to some of the most notorious and dangerous criminals on Cybertron.

One guard-'bot that stuck out from the rest was the head of security. He was different not only in his personality traits (which all of the guards found irritating), but also in appearance. He was mostly grey and silver, with an enormous torso plate which looked like it had blades sticking out of it in a circular pattern. His face was very earth-dog-like, with a black mask around his luminous yellow optics. What was most noticeable about him, though, was the huge wings protruding from his back. They didn't get in the way as often as the other guards thought they would. In fact, they tucked away quite nicely to enable him to fit through doorways.

This 'bot was given this post given his experience on a planet somewhere, most century guards were told, as no-one knew that much about him: he seemed to keep to himself. Except when he was with that very hot, very creepy interrogator.

Multicoloured, most of her co-workers thought she would be pleasant to work with, but that was another case of 'never judge a book by its cover'. She was snappy, rude, and often gave the impression that she would leap out of a dark corner and attack them. Those two would always be seen in the cafeteria together during their corresponding breaks or after hours. It was very sickening. This guy thought he was Casanova, and she the infamous femme-fatale.

The bird-dog made his way to large steel-reinforced door, with multiple locks and access panels. He approached a microphone and it demanded, "Name and access code required" and the 'bot replied, "Silverbolt, 249-443-297". After a series of clicks and whirrs, the door opened slowly for him.

He entered a large, grey room that contained only four other Maximals, and one Predacon. He took a deep breath and continued slowly towards a chair which hosted Blakarachnia, and as he went past brushed her with his wing, expecting a reaction. He got one: a stern look from the widow as she was in the middle of looking through some files.

Two of the three other Maximals were standing at the doorways, and the other next to Blackarachnia. Silverbolt growled at him, only to get a harsh "Sh!" from his beloved.

"Well well well, Barney, it seems your reputation for being a megalomaniac far outlives that than on Earth," said the femme, "in fact, I'm very impressed, although I daresay I could have been a little more creative when you raided the chambers of Courtship. Very important 'bot, you should've used a Comet P-90 to open the locks…" the guard next to her snorted.

Everyone knew that Blackarachnia was a former Predacon, and were wondering what she was doing at CMSC if she wasn't in a cell herself. And Wheeler had made it quite clear he resented working with (well, next to) her.

She ignored him, and continued, "…come on Grape Face, we've been at this for seven hours, now. You're wasting even more time than if you were trying to de-brief Waspinator." The bot sitting opposite her looked up, his manic expression still unchanged since the beginning of the session.

He was sitting in a large chair, with restraints on his ankles, wrists, across his stomach, chest and neck, with an extra high-powered restraint around his dragon-head hand. He had not moved a gear for 3 days, and the High Council had insisted the interrogation continue, despite what they were getting out of him: nothing. Then, for the first time in a long while, he spoke.

"Indeed, my dear spider, I could have used that delicate instrument on such a densely guarded door. Would've cost nothing on the black market…" the focus of his optics landed in her eyes "…it all comes down to this…it all comes down to this…mediocre components of something lesser. And greater…"

That was the last thing Megatron ever said within the walls of the Cybertropolis Maximum Security Correction Centre…

-------

It seemed like mere seconds for the Hercules to pull itself through the wormhole. In actual fact, it took 0.3 seconds for it and its crew to regain their shape. Inter-space travel did that to you.

"Computer, what is our destination?" called a weary, slightly askew-looking Optimus. The rest of the crew were still o their feet, but felt as if they had just been attacked by a swarm of cyber-bees. The ones that exploded on impact. The ship's computer, Sentinel 2, responded.

"Now in orbit around third mass of heat and rock from star 'Sun' of the Milky Way Galaxy, Galactic Sector Z-Z-9 Plural Z Alpha…Earth."

The Maximals gazed on the blue-and-green planet with a strange feeling, that seemed to warm their circuits. It was almost a fondness for it, a longing to once again place their optics upon the beauty of the landscape: the trees; the rivers; the mountains, everything that you would not see on Cybertron High St, was on Earth. Rattrap became aware of a very sheepish grin on his face, which he quickly wiped off before anyone else noticed it. Then Rhinox spoke:

"You know, I never thought I'd say this…but I'd give anything right now to just forget about technology and…go for a stroll…" To this, Optimus chuckled.

"Not just yet old friend. We need to contact the Elders and report a successful and safe arrival."

"Did you just say, 'safe'?" groaned Rattrap, who was finally regaining the feeling in his limbs. Optimus got up and walked over next to Cheetor, who had a detachable microphone on his head an was fiddling with frequency modulators attempting to get an inter-stellar signal through the wormhole they had just come out of. As soon as Optimus reached him he leapt out of the chair, in the process choking himself on the wire of the microphone. The crew snorted as the cat tried to free himself, humiliation surging through him like an energon build-up.

_Poor cat_, thought Optimus, helping his young friend get untangled. Rattrap was practically rolling on the floor, clutching his sides. His enjoyment was short-lived, however, when he received a well-deserved kick in the skid plate from the very source of his entertainment. He cursed the cat under his breath as he stood up.

Optimus put the com into a small plug on the side of his head that was clearly his left aural detector. Turning on the speakers, he found the right 'channel' as it were, and relayed a message through the microphone:

"This is Optimus Primal, commander of the Warp Ship Hercules calling spaceport tower. Please respond, over." There was crackling, and some sort of short but high-pitched screech coming from the console. Everyone stood still, silently listening to that strange sound. "Tower, repeat: this is Optimus Primal of the Warp Ship Hercules, do you read me?" He was almost shouting it, the crackling was so loud. The sound was heard again, and then…

"Spaceport Tower to Warp Ship Hercules. Apologies. The transwarp signature got a bit scrambled. Report you status, over." The voice that the crew was hearing, that of Jumpstart: the tower's main operator; was lower than usual. They had met the car transformer in person before their mission, and the black and red 'bot explained to them that he would be monitoring their progress via deep-space telemetry waves caused by the rift that would be opened after they travelled through the anomaly. Thinking nothing of it other than a strained signal, Optimus replied in a cheery voice.

"Report: successful journey through transwarp space. We're all OK here…for the most part…" he said amusedly as Rattrap was still rubbing where he had landed and Cheetor was still massaging his neck. "All systems normal. Awaiting command, over." The same crackling high-pitched sounds came through the com.

"Orders as normal. Proceed Primal. Report back in 72 megacycles. Over and out." And the com went silent, except for one more high-pitched frequency.

"Heh! That was charming! Man, has that guy gone through the smelter or something, he sure ain't as chirpy as he was when we met him." There was a mutter of agreement from the others.

"Probably rust." joked Cheetor. That lightened the mood a bit. "I can't wait to get down there. It'd be great to see Jack and Una again." They all couldn't wait. Time might have flown by for them, but three years is a long time, they all thought to themselves. But they couldn't risk going through an anomaly in an untested ship and end up with no means of getting home…again.

"Well Rhinox, start the landing gear. It's time to say hi to some old friends…" He sat back down and ordered Sentinel 2 to prepare the shields for atmospheric heat protection. So began their descent…

-------

As the mighty ship burned like a star in the atmosphere, there was activity in the bushes, the trees, the water, and the clouds below it. Several whirrs and clicks disturbed the tranquil serenity of the surface. All **was** well for the regular occurrences of the goings-on of Earth. Things were about to take a turn…

-------

Everything was going well. i _Too well. No, come on, this is no time to be negative_. /i Optimus was a 'bot who liked to keep thing positive, and since everyone else on the ship was so pleased with the mission so far he kept his thoughts to himself.

"Touchdown on planet's surface in 30 nano-clicks…27…20…" Every 'bot on board held their breath. "We've landed."

"Really?" said a very confused Cheetor, "I didn't feel a thing!" Indeed, the landing was so smooth that not even the motion sensors detected the contact with the ground. Impressive.

"Good, isn't it? I installed the ultra-sensitive landing gear myself!" beamed Rhinox, "It's designed to calculate the sensitivity of the surface using the bio-mass sensors on the exterior starboard hull. Few numbers, calculations, and the ship's descent is slowed to the extent than vibrations are subjected to a minimum of a feather landing on water." He was grinning broadly. He certainly was proud of his contribution to the designs and manufacture of the Hercules. In fact, most of Cybertron's greatest minds were stumped until Rhinox stepped in. What would they ever have done without him?

"Let's get ready to embark team. It's time to find those pods and bring the home." With a small cheer from his crew, they all made their way to the elevators (they had all done their best to have some of the same features from the Axalon installed), and made their way down to Earth.

-------

As soon as there was enough room for him, Cheetor transformed into beast mode and leapt off the elevator pad and ran in a complete circle around the ship. He hadn't had the chance to run like this in a long time. Optimus chuckled to see him enjoy the outdoors again. He transformed himself, feeling a bit odd but also rather content to be in beast mode after such a long time. They didn't need to of course, but it felt good all the same. Rattrap was taking in the all-too familiar landscape of what felt like his home for close to three years. He didn't tell anyone this, though. Shaking his head, he took a small pad from his subspace.

"Begin scan for stasis pods. And make it snappy, I ain't got all year!" A small satellite protrude from the top of the pad and whirred to indicate it had begun scanning. While they waited, the Maximals just sat around, and did all the stuff they used to do, like run, sit and smell the roses. So many good memories here. Just as many bad. Finally Rattrap's on-board computer had results.

"Zero stasis pods located within 30 mile radius. Request further range extension."

"WHAT? Aw, come on! What gives?" Rattrap was not a happy rat. With this so-called new-and-improved sensor, they would have found anything that even resembled a pod within a 70 mile radius.

"Hm. Well, if we're no getting anything here, we may as well move elsewhere. Cheetor, do a perimeter search. We should be OK but you can never tell with this planet, can you?" joked Optimus. As the feline zoomed off, Optimus took the time to just look around once more. His gaze was diverted towards the river canyon. He shuddered a bit. Many memories arose from that canyon. A safe refuge; and a death-trap. Then he heard a click as his com-link was activated, and a rather distressful-sounding Cheetor spoke with an exasperated tone.

"Cheetor to Optimus, come in." There was a loud crackling and some white noise over the radio as the 'bots struggled to hear each other over the two-way link.

"What is it Cheetor, is anything wrong?" replied Optimus. There was more crackling as he carefully listened to what Cheetor had to say.

"Everything's pretty…okay…-ig-Bot…I've got…ggr…-agging radio…I think…come and see this…"

Why the slag was there interference? These were allegedly the newest-most-improved com devices built specially for high magnitude energon interference, and yet they were already having problems barely 10 cycles on the planet which had stabilized its energon deposits long ago…

"Hang tight, Pussycat, we're on our way!" Rattrap yelled into the com.

"Not s…loud! Converge on…ordinates…Ch…out!"

-------

Close by, a small vixen taking refuge in the shade of the jungle trees woke up from its afternoon kip, and pricked up its ears. There was something coming towards it. It uncurled its body and leapt to its feet, its paws lightly padding the leaves it was nestling on. Its ultra-sensitive nose picked up something unfamiliar, something…tinny…Alarmed, it made a small barking noise. One yelp, then a howl.

At this, a lynx quietly jumped out of the tree above the vixen and softly landed right in front of it, staring it down. After a moment's deliberation of what to make of each other, they both headed carefully and quietly towards where the smell was coming from.

They were stopped dead in their tracks as a huge strange-looking feline leapt out of the bushes at them. They made startled whining sounds and darted back to where they had come from. The strange creature tilted its head to the left, squinting its eyes, and then it spoke:

"What? Is it my breath? I had that checked!" Cheetor called after the little furies in vain. "Aw, slag. Way to go on first impressions…" He pricked his ears and turned around to see his comrades land next to him. Rhinox and Rattrap had been riding on Optimus' back in flight mode.

The big gorilla-bot transformed and landed on his feet very noisily, resulting in a frenzy of small animals to scurry away from there. The unfitting transformers looked around the familiar jungle-scape, wondering what Cheetor had found. He had not said much since their arrival, which had been a few minutes, and it was getting on Rattrap's chrome copper nerves.

"Well Spots? I don't see nothing here worth dragging our tails into this slag-forsaken ant farm!" he said, squashing a beetle. Cheetor raised an eyebrow ridge.

"Wanna bet, Rat-face? Check b **this /b **out…" He put his paw on a disturbed patch of earth, and pressed down hard.

Within seconds, the ground began to shake. All four Maximals had to jump out of the way as a spike shot out form the ground, cracking the crust of the floor they were standing on. It rose to be twice the height of Optimal Optimus, but was as thin as a sheet of pressed steel. At the very top of the pole was what looked like an iron claw. As soon as the pole stopped rising, several clicks and whirrs ended a long procession, and that purple claw suddenly opened up and stared spinning. The Maximals looked on in awe. Then the silence was broken by a loud piercing noise that made the birds in the canopy above them fall of their branches.

"Did it do that before?" asked Optimus. Cheetor looked back at him sheepishly.

"Well…no…" A shifty look from the others prompted a good excuse. "But hey, come on, it was halfway going up when I saw it…and it was giving off a Pred signature." At this, all the Maximals' optics widened. This was pretty bad. At that very moment, the claw gave off another screeching sound that made all four 'bots fall to their knees, clutching their heads. After what seemed like minutes, it stopped, and they slowly and unsteadily rose to their feet. The claw was no longer spinning. But from the middle of it protruded a smaller pole with a red light blinking on and off. They stared at it for a while.

"What the slaggin' heck is b **that /b **?" inquired Rattrap "Is there something on the radio?"

"Not quite…" Rhinox replied. He squinted at the thing, whatever it was…wait…"It's an alarm beacon! Let's move!"

"Everybody back to the ship!" Within seconds of him giving his command, Optimus and his crew were running (or flying) back to the Hercules. But before they reached the edge of the forest, a huge ten foot titanium wall seemed to sprout suddenly from the ground. They screeched to a halt before colliding with this unusual obstacle.

"Routine mission? b **Routine /b **my shiny metal skid plate!" The Maximals started to make their way to the right of the wall, only to have another one pop up out of nowhere. Eventually, there was a perimeter of about 100m around them, with no way out…except up.

"All aboard!" cried Optimus. He transformed as quickly as possible into flight mode, and Rhinox, Rattrap and Cheetor all jumped onto his back. Headed skywards, Optimus powered up his jets and zoomed off. Just at the top layer of the canopy, an electric shield formed a dome above them. Before he could take evasive action, Optimus had crashed into the force shield and in an instant, the pilot and his passengers were caught up in what felt like a good-old energon surge, and they fell to the ground. They were knocked into stasis lock.

-------

Optimus woke up to find himself in restraints. He hurriedly looked around him to find his comrades shared his dilemma. Rhinox and Rattrap were still out cold, but he could see Cheetor just opposite him, in a huff. Once he caught Optimus' gaze, he quickly turned away.

"Sorry, Big-Bot…I shouldn't have touched that thing…" He sounded really upset. Optimus was annoyed, but he couldn't blame Cheetor entirely.

"It's OK, Cheetor. I have a feeling that beacon would have gone off regardless. I don't blame you."

"Speak for yourself." came a weary voice from next to them. Perfect. Rattrap had only just come back online and already he was making the situation worse.

"Shut up Rattrap." Optimus said simply and firmly. "All we need to ask ourselves now is who or what out that thing there…"

"Let's stick with whom…" came Rhinox's groggy voice from the other side of Optimus. He had come back online too. Good. Now that all four of them were fully functional, they could deliberate on what just happened. "That was definitely of Predacon design…" Rhinox continued, "…it gave off al the right frequencies for an alarm beacon, but no noise…this seems oddly familiar, dontcha think?" Optimus agreed. Something was up, and as soon as he broke free of his bonds, he intended to find out. But no matter how he struggled, regardless of his size and strength, he could not free himself. His weapons had all been disarmed, and it seemed as though the others' had been as well…

_i __Prime_… /i

Just then, they heard a branch snapping under the weight of something. And out of the darkness came an enormous boa constrictor, and behind it what looked like a half-bat, half-ape creature. The Maximals stared as the fully-organic creatures stopped in a line, and then parted again to make way for a sleek, black cobra. These couldn't be organic creatures, could they? They had never seen the likes of that particular chimera. The cobra then moved slowly and silently towards Optimus. Its head was level with his, and it menacingly hissed and rolled its forked tongue at him.

"Greetingssssss friendssssss…" Optimus' optics widened to the size of small boulders. "Sssssooo sssssorry about the…accommodationsssss." The voice was female, and she was mocking Optimus with her sarcastic tone and squinting slit eyes. "But I'm afraid you have tresssspasssed on our ground. We do not take kindly to missserable Maxxximal ssssnooperssss…"

"Hey! Who're you calling a snooper?!" retorted Rattrap. Optimus glared at him for silence.

"We do apologise, but we weren't snooping or anything like…" but she cut across him.

"Ssssssilenccce!!! You are not like the ressst of usss are you? No…you do not ssseem to have organic beasssst modessss…" Completely ignoring Rhinox's "Well, actually…", she slithered around Optimus threateningly. "Who sent you?!" the femme spat, "What isss that fffilthy little fffeline up to thissss time, eh?" Cheetor looked around, a look of confusion painted vividly on his face. The cobra was clearly losing patience. "Fine. Sssserpentia, TERRORIZZZZE!" And in a flurry of clicks and whirrs, standing before the Maximals in the place of the thin black cobra was a tall thin femme-bot.

The flaps of the cobra's head protruded from the back of her own, whilst the eyes transferred to her abdominal area. Much of the scaly skin stretched tightly over her body, and the tail wrapped around her middle as a sort of belt. She grinned cruelly at them, revealing long, sharp, poisonous fangs that seemed to glow inside her mouth. "Hmm…I think we are capable of extracting the information ourssselvessss. What do you think Obertron?" she turned to the half-bat half-ape behind her, who cried out the activation code with a deep, harsh and menacing voice.

The bat wings were embedded into his arms, which remained ape-like, with the exception of long clawed hands. His enormous bat ears covered his groin, whilst his remaining gorilla head ended up on his chest, and his feet were creepy little pointed toes. His optics were small and black, and he had a cute little snout that revealed small pointed teeth. Despite those tiny features, he had an overpowering presence, even for Optimus.

"I believe so!" he cried with a very dramatic tone. Serpentia and the boa rolled their eyes/optics. His vowels were very pronounced, and his accent was very 'RP English'. "Perhaps a little persuasion first?" All three Predacons grinned.

"Ooo, goody…" cackled the boa constrictor, speaking for the very first time. He had a very 'ug' voice, as if his speech circuits were impaired or damaged or didn't exist at all. Unlike his serpent comrade, this snake was as think as a tree trunk, and his length seemed immeasurable. He wordlessly transformed to reveal a 'bot almost the size of Optimus. The snake head acted as a head helmet, much like super-beast Megatron. He was very blocky, and looked almost exactly like an old Decepticon the only difference was the moss-green snake skin that covered his torso, legs and arms. His hands had long, curved claws that seemed to be formed by fangs from his beast mode, and his clicked and camped them threateningly at Rattrap. "Mmmm…rat-chops." The he suddenly lunged out and yelled, "SMASH! Maximals must…destroy!! Gearcrush…CLOBBER MODE!!!!" but his rant was short-lived as Serpentia miraculously rose several feet into the air (using her beast mode tail as a jack) and slapped him hard across the face.

"Mindless fool!" scorned Obertron "Do you not realise that we may need these foul demons?!" The Maximals were taken aback. Foul demons? Are these 'bots joking or what? "These abominations may hold the key to our End Game…dost thou not see it?"

"What…see?" Gearcrush replied. Obertron buried his face in his claws, muttering to himself.

"Sssssilenccce both of you!" spat Serpentia, "Let'sss fight when we're drunk. Sssimpletonssss." She pulled out a long energon blade, about the length of her arm. "Now my namelessss nemesssissss, tell me all your sssecretssss or I sshhall jussst have to get nasssstyyy…" Thoroughly enjoying herself now, the femme walked past each of the Maximals, eyeing them mockingly as she fingered her sword from vase to tip; slowly and menacingly.

"We don't have any secrets to tell you…" Optimus began hurriedly, seeing her blade going dangerously close to Rattrap's neck, "We are transformers, like you, but with different body structures…" but at that, all three of their captors lunged at them, and the utmost fury was upon their faces. Then Serpentia screamed bloody murder.

"YOU ARE NOTHING LIKE USSSS!!!" If robots were capable of it, spit would be flying from her mouth as she yelled. If that wasn't bad enough, the blade seemed to be increasing in power somehow. But the next thing she said was quieter and more venomous, which made it all the more frightening "How dare you…" she had raised herself to Optimus' optic-level, and was staring straight through him. "To the Pitt with you...Maxxximal…"

She placed the tip of the blade against his left shoulder, held it there for a while, absorbing the fear in his eyes; then…

"AAARGH!" Optimus' cry was hoarse and riddled with pain as Serpentia lashed the blade across his chest, leaving a gash that exposed his insides and caused a small but painful energon surge.

"Big-Bot!", "Knock it off yeh lousy little…", "Leave him alone!" the others yelled simultaneously, overlapping each other like motors on a busy highway. Gearcrush lunged in on Rhinox and grabbed his throat, while Obertron swooped in on Cheetor and Rattrap.

"Have no fear…" he said in a very monotonic voice, "You're next." Staring blankly into Rattrap's optics, he raised his hands, and massive inch-thick, foot-long claws made of pure energon slowly crept out from his ugly fingertips. Rattrap tried to yell, but his audio emitters seemed to catch in his throat, and he would have been drowned out by Cheetor's protesting screams. Just as he felt one of those horrible claws going into his stomach, a small growl seeped slowly into his aural sensors. He didn't even notice that the energon was no longer inside him, but had retracted back into Obertron's hands as he turned and hissed at the source of the noise. He took one final look around him. Optimus was writhing in pain at the gash in his chest and Rhinox was still pinned to the wall by Gearcrush and Serpentia. Then he turned to Cheetor, whose optics had widened to the extent that he had lost his forehead as Obertron retreated into a bush. Then he blacked out, and Cheetor began to struggle against his bonds. Wherever the bat-monkey had gone, he had seen something, and Cheetor was pretty sure he had too.

-------

Upon Obertron's return the Maximals had been unbound, and were now all lying on the floor in pain.

"Where havvve you been Wither Wingssss?" hissed Serpentia.

"I heard a sound, you wanton writher," he replied snidely, "I believe that scouting and reconnaissance was b **your /b **duty, oaf." he said to Gearcrush, who merely grunted in reply. He was too busy 'crushing' Cheetor in a headlock. The cat's circuits were fritzing under the pressure. The other three were too weak to do anything to help him or themselves. Then the same noise that Obertron had detected was heard again, this time louder and more mechanical. For the first time since their arrival, the Predacons became less relaxed and dominant. Their gears grinded with the tension of moving so slowly and cautiously, soon to be disturbed by the clanking of metal on metal as the same lynx that had eluded Cheetor leapt out of the bushes from which Obertron had emerged. Gears grinded and circuits sizzled as the new transformer landed on top of Serpentia and pinned her to the ground with two small daggers into he elbow joints. The snake yelled a distorted cry of pain and rage, accompanied by Gearcrush's war cry as he and the ape-bat lunged for them. Amazingly, they were thrown off target by a small canine-looking creature that hurtled into the side of Obertron, causing a domino of metal components as the Predacon duo landed in a heap on the floor. The little vixen collapsed just opposite them, having exhausted herself by the last knock-out. Serpentia and the lynx were rolling about on the disturbed shrubbery, at each other's throats when the lynx cried out, "Vixen! Watch your six!" The little canine at up and turned just in time to dodge a missile fired by Obertron, who was hovering several feet in the air, flapping his arm-wings and firing quasar missiles form a cannon embedded in his chest. With a low growl the fox said, "Vixen…MAXIMISE!" and in an instant a small and slender femme-bot propelled off the ground and knocked the chimera into a rock face behind him.

Serpentia was buried under a pile of rocks for the time being, and the lynx had rushed over to Optimus, who was still laying face-up on the ground. She pulled out what looked like a large needle, and rammed it into his chest with full force. He grunted in pain, but it slowly started to ebb away. She kept a hold of the needle as she looked him full on in the face. She has a very pretty face, Optimus couldn't help but notice. Her optics were small and black with crystallised white pupils that focused in on his own. "Keep that there," she said with a hurried and warning but still pleasant voice, "It'll speed up your intern---AAAGH!" She was abruptly cut off by an attack from behind as Gearcrush yanked her from her standing position and had her in a body crushing position 7 feet off the ground. The gargantuan Predacon chuckled stupidly as she wriggled and writhed in his grip. He was enjoying seeing the Maximal female suffering in his clutches.

A barrage of firepower hit the mech in the back as Cheetor, Rhinox and Rattrap were back on their feet. Gearcrush dropped the femme from his arms and turned to face the much tinier Maximals. Before he could return fire with an enormous bazooka from his subspace, the lynx and Optimus joined in the fray, hitting the huge 'bot with bullets, quasar beams and missiles. Serpentia blasted her way out of the rocky blanket.

"Ssssslag! Retreat, you mindlesssss minionssss!" and all three Predacons fled the scene, injured and cursing as they ran/flew. Optimus gave the small femme panting next to him rubbing her neck a look of thanks, and she returned it with a weak smile.

"Hey, uh, cat-person!" called Rattrap, "I think yer friend needs a little help, here…"

Indeed, the vixen…Vixen…was roughed up quite a bit. The lynx ran to her side and injected her with the same substance she had Optimus just a few minutes earlier. The lights flickered slowly on in Vixen's optics.

"Thanks…" she mumbled weakly.

"Hang in there, cubby, we'll get you back home." She turned to the others, "Thanks for the back-up…as I was b **trying /b **to tell you, this stuff enhances your internal repairs, even when not in beast mode. Nice, huh?" she said, holding up the empty vial. The four mechs stared at her confusedly. The two femmes stared back awkwardly. Then Cheetor broke the silence by saying, "Uh…thanks for the save?"

"Yeah, sorry we took so long," she seemed to be debating whether or not to continue speaking, "At first we thought you were Predacon hostiles, and then when those three showed up we thought it was just some ploy to get us to fall into another one of their traps…"

"We're really sorry!" Vixen cut across, "It's just…with newcomers you can never be too sure…"

"Oh sure, 'cause a couple o' 'bots walking through the jungle isn't something you see every…" he stopped as soon as he realized what he was saying. Then came the inevitable, "Shut up, Rattrap!"

"Now, to get home…" the lynx stated, almost like an order. But Optimus stopped her.

"I'm sorry, but there are a few things I think we need to clear up here, I mean, you are Maximals as I can see but…who are you?" She merely looked at him. Then she smiled sweetly and said:

"Call me Accinon. And there'll be plenty of time for pleasantries when we get back to base, if you don't mind," she added a little more sternly, "We nee to get Vixen here some repairs; that stuff isn't miracle oil, you know." So she transformed into beast mode and hoisted her comrade onto her back.

They walked for about 30 metres until they reached the walls that had popped out of nowhere. Rattrap was about to make a snide comment about how the femme was as stuck as they were…until she knocked at a certain point in the wall that caused it to retract as suddenly and easily as they had emerged before.

"Crude Pred design…you gotta love 'em!" Rattrap's spirit was momentarily crushed.

"Would you like a lift? I can easily fly both of you to your base if you…"

"Oh no, we can manage, thanks!" replied Vixen, hoarsely.

"Hush, you! Get some rest, you'll need it for the journey back." Optimus couldn't believe what he was hearing. She was actually going to make her injured comrade endure the journey to…wherever they were going? That was something he would not tolerate, however long he'd known that femme.

"Please, I **insist**," he said firmly, "You both seemed o have obtained some damage so…" but Accinon did not appear to be listening. Instead, she put two fingers and her mouth and blew the most deafening whistle any of them had every heard. After about 10 seconds of getting their hearing back, a small speck appeared on the horizon. As it came closer, Rhinox pulled out his chain guns as a precaution. But Accinon told him to relax, for as the thing drew closer, it revealed itself as a hover-deck. It had all the bells and whistles, including seats.

"All aboard?" Accinon carefully placed Vixen on a stretcher, hopped onto the platform herself, and turned to the new arrivals. "You are welcome to come with us if you want. Personally, I wouldn't want to hang around and wait for the terrible trio to come back looking for me with payback fresh in their minds." Optimus surveyed the hover-deck. It looked sturdy enough to hold even him, but something concerned him. Rhinox worded his thoughts for him.

"Aren't you prone to attack on this thing?" he asked the lynx, "It would seem like you're sitting ducks out there with no kind of protection."

"We have our ways." Accinon replied simply. "Our defenses are far superior to what the Preds have…at the moment…" she muttered aside. The mechs did not look convinced. "All right then, I'll show you…" She pulled a switch to her left that caused a force field to form directly around and above the hover-deck. Rhinox stared in awe at this spectacle. He had only brushed the surface of smaller-scale personal force shields.

"Very impressive," he stammered, "I'd very much like to have a look at the components, see if I might be able to integrate it into our own system…this looked really advanced…" Needless to say he was jealous. The others tried their best to contain their sniggers as Rhinox headed for the control panel. Only to be greeted the inside of a barrel of Accinon's gun. Optimus, Rattrap and Cheetor got their own weapons out as she squinted her optics looking suspiciously at Rhinox. Then she lowered her weapon.

"Sorry, but only technical personnel are permitted to view that control box…" She looked at them all inquiringly, their weapons still raised at her, "…you can accompany us back to base if you wish, but for now, I think it would be best if you didn't touch anything. Like Vixy said, you can never be too careful with newbies…"

"Oh, for bootin' up cold! Do we have 'Predacon Spies' welded on our foreheads or somethin'?"

"Rattrap…" Optimus began, but Accinon cut across him.

"No, no, he's right, I shouldn't be so quick to judge. I mean, it's obvious you're Maximals…but we've been having major security leaks lately leading to…incidents, some near fatal…" her voice tailed off at that point, and she bowed her head.

"We didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," assured Optimus, "but we're on a mission here. A mission to bring you home…" Accinon and Vixen merely stared.

"Home?" said a very groggy Vixen, "What are you talking about? b **This /b **is our home right here." i _Oh dear. These Maximals probably had their memories of Cybertron erased from their data tracks. /i _That was usually the case with protoforms. Sometimes when they land not quite everything is in tact. The mechs hesitate for a moment, then Rhinox said,

"Home…to Cybertron…you're Maximals, aren't you? It's where you belong, and we're here to take all you protoform 'bots back."

"Protoforms? 'Non, what's he talking about?" inquired Vixen. Accinon remained silent. She looked down at her young friend, whose optics were wide with curiosity and confusion.

"Could we talk about this later?" she whispered to Optimus, "Not in front of the kid…" i _What/i _Well, if that was her wish, Optimus was not about to object. He signaled to his crew to hop aboard the hover-deck, and they did so wordlessly but cautiously.

When all were aboard, and Rhinox radioed Sentinel 2 t activate defenses, they were off. Like a shot too. The hover-deck's speed was incredible for something not built in a specialist factory.

"Very impressive." complimented Rhinox, who was holding onto the railing for dear life. Optimus chuckled. It was strange to be moving so fast and not on his own accord, but it was pleasant as well. Even with the force shield up he could feel the wind cooling his iron features. They sped on past familiar landscapes of this presumed-barren planet. The planet seemed to have fully recovered form any effects of the Vok planet-buster. The Maximals had a chance to move around the platform without shaking it, despite their difference in sizes. They moved from left to right pointing out old battle locations, reminiscing and remembering, laughing at some and at some hung their heads in silence. One such location was at an all too familiar river cliff; that had retreated upstream several metres in the time they had gone. Despite the speed they were going at, Cheetor leapt off the platform, through the force shield and ran towards the edge of the cliff. Optimus demanded them to stop to follow the impulsive young cat.

When Optimus and Rattrap joined him on foot, Cheetor was standing with a strange look on his face, which was directed at the enormous pool that had engulfed their beloved Axalon all those years ago. The gorilla and the rat shared in his moment of silence at this not-so-fond memory.

As they walked slowly back to the hover deck, Accinon considered these new 'bots carefully. They seemed to know exactly what they were doing here and where they were. She would deal with this when they got to their destination…

-------

"Now in session, High Council meeting concerning trial of Predacon rogue Megatron. All rise for the Council of Elders."

The voice echoed through the enormous hall with delegates, both Maximal and Predacon, seated in neat concentric rows around a large circular platform hosting four large seats, the occupants of which were starting to enter the great hall. All rose in respect for the board of the highest council members; three mechs and a femme. When these fairly large 'bots took their seat, the same voice that announced their arrival ordered all to resume their seated positions.

The Council of Elders consisted of four highly respected 'bots. There was only one female; one of the Maximals. She was fairly large for a femme, with large features (long arms and legs) and a wide face, with optics that seemed to examine delegates, but kindly. Standing next to her was a mech much the same size, but more slender in build. His face seemed harder and less trusting than his companion. But their size cowered in comparison to the remaining Elders. Two survivors of the Autobots and Decepticons. The Autobot was Ultra Magnus, one of the few remaining Autobots left after the Great War, at least who still had diplomatic authority. His oil tanker/car carrier alternate modes made him big and bulky as well as very colourful. The former commander was a very pleasant robot, and although in a not-so-comfortable position of authority, the former commander found it easy to relate to Cybertronian issues as a high-status Council Elder. Though not a Maximal, he was certainly one of the 'Elders of Cybertron'.

The last 'bot was the most sinister one of the Elders. However, he hid it well. He merely stared at a point above all the heads of the crowd below him. It was not easily noticeable that he was a Decepticon. Granted he was big, so he was one of the two, but if appearances ever were deceiving…His colour, for one, was not what would be considered 'representative of evil'. His colour, in fact, was a base of blue, with silver linings to define his tank mode and masculine features. It was his absolute calmness and charisma that got you. He was charming in his decorum and attitude, and when conversing with the Cybertronian press his charm could melt the reporters into a submissive trance and listen to his every word. The only thing that would give him away as a Decepticon was his left optic. Occasionally, when you are locked in with his gaze, it will flicker and dart from side to side, breaking eye contact, and you know at once that something else is circulating in his mind, that he was listening for something that was not being said. This Decepticon was Soundwave.

"Please enter chief interrogator unit Blackarachnia" came the voice. The Transmetal 2 arachnoid femme walked gracefully into the hall and onto the hovering platform, attracting many pairs of staring optics from all the male delegates. Their gazes were quickly averted as she was accompanied by the Head of Security, Silverbolt. He stood authoritatively by the steps up to Blackarachnia's podium. The she-spider sat calmly on a much smaller seat brought up for her by the press of a button from the back of the hall. She looked up at the Elders straightening her shiny new badge, her optics falling quickly onto Soundwave, but quickly reverted to looking straight through all of them. The hall began to buzz as the Elder Ultra Magnus pulled up a holo-schematic indicating the highly guarded cell at CMSC. He turned his proud head to the widow in front of him.

"How goes the interrogation, Blackarachnia?" he said friendlily. She had met him on one occasion prior to this High Council summit. It was a private get-together between them and the other Elders as a pre-summit debriefing. He had seemed pleasant enough, even more than a regular Maximal, she had thought. It was that Soundwave that had caught her attention. He had done nothing but stare at her the whole session. His silence is what got her. She smiled back at Ultra Magnus.

"Slowly. Ol' Megahead isn't too willing to share any of his cookie recipes, if you know what I mean." There was a surprised murmur from the delegation. Diamond Nine, the female Maximal, raised both eyebrow ridges. Clearly these stuck-ups weren't used to a little spider spice! "In fact, I think he's lost the will to rant about himself…this is serious…" she added with a smirk. There was a lot of irritated muttering from some of the Maximal representatives. Blackarachnia ignored it. Claymor, the last remaining Elder, spoke in a somber and serious voice to the widow.

"In his first report, Optimus Primal stated that Megatron attempted a mergence of his own spark with that of the original Megatron…"

"True, and succeeded, which is what got him his current dragon beast mode…"

"Please refrain from interrupting again, Miss Blackarachnia. As I was saying, Primal also sated that he was successful in restoring the original Megatron's spark into its rightful body, is that correct?"

There was a silence.

"As I know it, yes. Megs definitely only had one spark left in him when we left Earth. Although admittedly I wasn't there when he did it…"

"So where were you, then?" came a quiet voice from the fourth chair. Soundwave had been listening intently to Blackarachnia's statement with his hands pressed lightly

against each other at the fingertips all the while. She stared at him.

"I was in the Ark control centre reinstalling Telatran 1's core programming to protect the 'bots inside as opposed to the whole mountain…as it should be." She leaned back and folded her right leg over her left to indicate she had nothing more to say on the matter. Soundwave was smiling. But it was a cold smile, empty and malicious, with one eyebrow ridge raised. Claymor continued,

"But wasn't that task up to unit Rhinox? As the Axalon's designated technician, it seems more plausible that he would be responsible as well as fully capable of restoring the Ark as it was. After all, he is an expert in Autobot technological history. And, you are farmer Predacon yourself…"

"And what's that supposed to mean, bright-eyes?!" She shot up in retaliation while Silverbolt growled behind her. Several Predacon delegates also rose in protest. There was an uproar as Blackarachnia and Claymor stared each other down. A gavel was heard echoing even over all the commotion. However, it was merely Ultra Magnus's fist pounding the table in front of him as he called for order.

"If the house would b **please /b **calm down. We strive for political correctness here, and I am sure it was not Claymor's intention to suggest that action had anything to do with…" he paused for a moment, "…what was the point you were getting at, Claymor?"

"Unit Blackarachnia credited in her last report, as well as her statement a few cycles ago, Megatron's willing discretion and evasiveness to answer questions…" but he was interrupted.

"Will Council Elder Claymor b **please /b **get to the point of this unstructured and menial argument?" said a very huffy and annoyed Diamond Nine, who was on the edge of her seat awaiting the subtle message of Claymor's argument. With a slightly irritated look at the enormous femme, he continued.

"Our med techs have reported an abnormality in Megatron's superstructure."

"No DUH, you ignoramus, he's been Transmetalised and deep-fried into what he is! Haven't you been listening?"

"ORDER! If you would be so kind!" came Ultra Magnus' booming voice.

"The council may like to take note…" continued Claymor, eyeing all the 'bots before him, "…that Megatron and possibly even Optimus Primal have not have been wholly truthful of late…"

-------

Back on Earth, the four Maximal mechs and two femmes had descended from the deck and were now on foot or paw headed towards a familiar-looking mountain landscape. Cheetor recognized it immediately as the scene where Snowstalker was lost to Tigatron. As these painful memories resurfaced, so did his tears. He hid his face, as none of the others would understand why he was in this state. Accinon, who was still in beast mode with Vixen on her back, seemed to be headed for the clearing just beyond a large rock formation half a klick away. When they reached it, she carefully placed Vixen in a seated position and transformed. She turned to her guests.

"I'm afraid I must ask you to disarm your weapons." She eyed them as Rattrap gave a 'no way' splutter, followed by a smack on the back of the head from Rhinox. "Please, it's for your own safety as much as ours." Almost at once Optimus complied, not wishing to make a bad impression on a new potential friend. All the others followed suit, though Rattrap reluctantly. She smiled. "Stand back. And hold still."

She pulled out a small remote device from her subspace, and pressed an opaque glowing-green button. And at once, even though it was not forced upon them, the Maximals could not move, as a green beam emitted from out of nowhere and started scanning them all. It gave them all an icy chill, and were almost mesmerised by the colour and the strangely familiar feeling coursing through their bodies. This took several seconds, and once it had stopped they all shuddered.

"You get used to that, but you still don't…if you know what I mean." said Vixen. Accinon hushed her once again, and the four mechs took a step back as a huge screen appeared again out of nowhere and presented itself before Accinon. A metallic voice demanded access code and reason for visit.

"Units Accinon, Vixen and guests. Guest factions; Maximals, quantity; four. Unscheduled reparations stopover." She said all this in a very bored voice, as if she wanted to get it all over with. "Come ON! Must we go through this every time?""

"Personality trait recognized." came the computer voice. Accinon rolled her optics. "Enter units…" And with that, pistons hissed and covered the serene sounds of the jungle close by, and opened up a doorway in the rock face in front of them. Accinon took Vixen's arm and put it over her shoulder and made her way into the tunnel of the doorway.

"You comin' or what?" They followed.

After about a minute's 'walk after the doorway closed behind them, they reached an enormous cavern. The new comers stared. Optimus was the first of them to talk as they gazed in awe at the sight below them.

"By the Matrix…"

-------


	2. The Saga Continues

**BEAST  
WARS**

VOLUME 1

**Chapter 2:**

"…By the Matrix!"

What stood below them in the enormous cove…was an entire underground community. They did not believe what they were seeing. Several stations of complex-looking machinery, with 'bots working right by them. And there were a lot of them.

They watched as a large stallion trotted in the direction of a large circular console right in the middle of the cavern. It looked very familiar. But what was strange was that all of these transformers had completely organic beast modes.

They looked at each other confusedly, wondering how that could be. After the quantum surge, almost every creature that had emerged from a stasis pod had been a Transmetal. So how was it that all they saw was flesh and fur?

Optimus had been so distracted by the sight of a whole new community inside this mountain that he didn't even notice that Accinon and Vixen were no longer by their side. The four mechs quickly followed the femmes down a stairwell carved out of the cave wall that ascended to the floor of the cavern, where there was a pool of crystal clear spring water.

The stairs were surprisingly wide enough even for Optimus to ascend them without fear of losing his balance and falling off.

"R-session, now!" called Accinon to the closet 'bot to her. A fairly hefty-looking mech turned and trotted towards them. He took Vixen in his arms and, after glancing at the four noobs behinds Accinon, turned and headed for a tunnel that undoubtedly led to another section of the cavern. Accinon made her way to the circular console. Optimus called after her.

"Hey wait! No introductions? Or are you just going to leave us standing here?" She eyed him up and down with one brow ridge raised, and shrugged.

"You look like a big boy, I'm sure you can handle yourself…" and she turned, flicked her fluffy tail at them, and walked away. Rattrap let out a huff.

"Huh! Now b **that's /b ** rude. She seemed close to nice about 20 cycles ago…"

"Don't mind 'Non. She has a multiple personality glitch. So far we've met about four or so." Rattrap pivoted on his heels towards the source of the voice to find himself facing a large boxy machine face with red and gold buttons decorating its face.

"Hunh? Did that thing jus' say somethin'?" he inquired to his friends.

If he was capable, he would have blushed fiercely as a steel blue femme stepped out from behind the machine.

The femme smirked and Rattrap scowled as hoots of stifled chortles erupted from behind him. The femme had a silver face and a mask similar to Optimus', but seemed to open sideways rather than horizontally. She had big, black optics and a small face. Well, it looked small, compared to the jungle of black steel coils protruding from the brow-line back. Rhinox tilted his head and narrowed his optics. i _Is that supposed to be hair? /i _

"I take it you haven't had the complimentary tour, huh? Sorry, it's been a bit crazy today, we've been picking up weird signals all morning." She eyed Rattrap, Optimus and Cheetor carefully and curiously.

"That was us." came Rhinox's voice from behind Optimus. "We arrived a few megacycles ago through a transwarp wormhole to…to…" his voiced trailed off. The femme-bot's optics had widened to the extent that there were cracks forming at the corners. She stared at Rhinox, who shifted uncomfortably as her stare bore into his core.

"You…you're…" It was as if her voice box had rusted over, "…you're not….from around here?!" her breathing became heavy and shallow.

They didn't understand what was going on. First it was Accinon and Vixen, and now this bot seemed to get somewhat upset about any mention of….anything normal to them. Were they b **all /b ** activated with memory data malfunctions?

"Are you alright?" inquired Optimus, concerned. She took a deep breath, and nodded. He continued gently, "May I speak with your commander? It seems we have a bit of explaining to do." he added as he looked around, aware of many gawking optics.

"Yeah, sure. This way." She led them like an air hostess towards the circular console. Rhinox was keen on getting a closer look at it, but was disappointed as the femme guided him towards a large tunnel on their right.

The tunnel was well lit. Small neon bulbs were dotted along the walls like a blanket of stars, illuminating every fold in the rock as they continued their promenade to their unknown destination.

It was certainly an odd feeling. As he walked for what felt like an age, all Optimus could think about was that it felt like he had never left Earth. But he still felt like a stranger on this rocky globe as he mused over the creation of this artificially altered mountain lair. i _How did they build it in so little time? /i _

Then, quite suddenly, their guide halted. She turned to them, looking quite freaky in the shadow of the neon. It was the 'hair' mostly.

"Gimme a nano-click."

And at that, she transformed into a small black spider monkey. Rattrap nudged Optimus' shin with his elbow and winked, pointing at the little primate.

They barely had time to stare at each other in disbelief when she ran towards the edge of a very wide, very deep canyon and leapt off of it with tremendous back leg force. i _She must have a flight mode, she can't be b __**that /b **__ crazy_, /i thought Cheetor. But she didn't seem to have wings or jets, and she showed no intention of transforming. Halfway across the gorge, she began to fall.

Optimus immediately activated his jets to rush to her aid, but for some reason, his flight systems would not respond. He looked at Cheetor, who had attempted the same thing. The cat shook his head helplessly. Optics wide, they stared at the femme fall to her death…

…or so they assumed.

For during her descent she angled her body at the precise angle to land herself 10 metres down the top of the canyon wall. There was a small tree-like plant protruding from a lark fault crack. The spider monkey grabbed onto a long branch with her long, black tail, and swung dramatically three times around the branch and miraculously ended up on the ledge opposite the gawking newcomers.

_A bit dramatic, but that was fun,_ the femme thought to herself. She didn't need to spin quite so much, but the looks on those guys' faces was worth the extra mileage. Without further ado, she pushed a large button on the wall behind her, which extended a bridge from a slot in the canyon wall. Once it reached their end the four mechs stared. A lot of trouble to go through, wasn't it?

Rattrap, being the smallest was persuaded (much to his dismay) to cross first. He cautiously stepped onto the metal crossing one foot at a time. The femme looked impatient and irritated.

"Look, if the bridge doesn't give out, my patience will." Her hand edged closer to the 'retract' button.

Next thing she knew Rattrap was by her side, bent over his knees and panting. "It's good! Come on over!" he called to the others. The spider monkey rolled her optics. Optimus was still unsure about the bridge, but not only because of his size and weight. But his trusting nature kicked in, as he believed this young femme had no reason to want to harm them. Yet. Optimus intended to show good faith and manners and walked over to her after the rest of his comrades.

Once they were across, she pressed the retract button and a brief flash of yellow light blazed out from the bottom of the canyon. Optimus and the others felt their internal systems reboot. "I'll explain that later," the small femme stated to the dumfounded mechanoids. She didn't feel comfortable not letting them know about it beforehand, but those were her orders. It wasn't a good start if they wanted to be friends.

After a much shorter walk, they emerged into another cavern, much bigger this time. Rhinox couldn't help but let his jaw drop to the ground. The walls were completely covered with machinery: buttons, lights knobs, switches, the works.

Stalactites and stalagmites were dotted with lights, which made them sparkle like diamond-encrusted fingers of the cave. A large area had been completely flattened out, and several more smaller area led off from it. The large one was where most of the machinery was held. It was impressive, even though the machines themselves were old and tacky. They saw that one of the smaller areas, which was half-blocked by rock, was being used as a combat training area. The others seemed to be used mostly for building and repair.

There were also doors located at every wall of the cave. Chimneys were being used as resting places: Rattrap spotted a hawk nestled in its wings in one of the smaller ones. The others must have been used as escape tunnels, or something of the sort.

"Very impressive…" Rhinox said out loud to himself. Cheetor and Rattrap's attention however was drawn to the femme bots. As far as males went, they were outnumbered. A smirk crept its way onto Rattrap's face. i _I guess I'm not gonna miss Cybertron much __**this**__ time… /i _He snickered and rubbed his hands together, and nudged Cheetor, who just stared, mouth agape.

"How did you manage to build all of this?" inquired Optimus, prying his gaze away from the magnificent scene and onto the much smaller femme. He saw her hesitate, mouth slightly open, as if she was about to answer him, but for whatever reason held back the words.

"Well, the cave was already here," she said, her optics dashing from left to bottom right as she continued to lead them, "we just…added a few things."

"Hold it RIGHT there!"

They turned with a start.

"Ah, slag…" they heard the femme moan. Cheetor couldn't help but feel nervous because the low, booming voice echoed through the cave like a siren.

"Stay where you are and put your hands up!" demanded the voice.

"Comply," ordered Optimus, "we don't want to seem hostile…"

They did as they were told, aware of many of the bots edging backwards, some reaching for their weapons. Rattrap looked behind him, and saw the spider monkey draw her own twin blades. She gave him a hopelessly apologetic look. Then, she nudged him in the back with her blade, forcing him forwards.

"Tanks fer nuttin, kid!" he sneered. She scowled. She was just following orders.

The four newcomers walked down an aisle bordered by a line of Maximals, and optics from birds, mammals and reptiles followed their every pace. They felt sheepish with their arms up in the air, as if they were about to perform some sort of silly dance.

They were forced to approach a rather large mech, whose beast mode appeared to be that of a grey wolf. Half of the beast's head was on each shoulder, much like Rattrap's, only this bot's was, again, organic-looking. He appeared to have a fang necklace around his hulky neckline, which lay on top of a chest of white fur. His 'muscular' arms held his beast mode's front paws off his elbow, and his legs were that of his hind legs. His face was blue, with fierce red optics, and a hungry look upon it. If looks could kill, Optimus would be shaking hands with his namesake right now.

"On your knees."

They stared at him, flabbergasted by his tone.

"I don't believe I stuttered…" he added, firmly. They obeyed, and dropped to their knees. To be fair, Optimus may as well have stayed standing, as his ginormity was overwhelming no matter what his position. Many of the bots observing him were relatively the same size. But who had ever heard of a giant metallic gorilla?

The mech in front of them huffed, obviously annoyed that he could not look his captive directly in the eye.

He shook his head, deciding it would not undermine his authority, the mech walked towards them. He looked each of them over, huffing and snorting occasionally. After what felt like an age, he backed away, hands behind his back and asked, "What are you? Hm? Some kind of mutant freaks?"

"Excuse me?!" cried Rattrap, insulted, "Seriously, is it the way we dress?" he asked Rhinox.

The wolf released a quick, harsh bark aimed at Rattrap. To this, Rattrap leaned forward about to retaliate, but he swiftly felt the blow of a large hand on the back of his head. The wolf-mech took a deep, hard breath, and pinched his nose ridge.

"Nightshaft?" he said, his head still down.

"Ya?" replied the spider-monkey femme behind them.

"Oh, so you gotta name, now, do yeh?" jeered Rattrap. She gave him, if possible, an even deeper scowl.

"Come here, please," said the wolf.

"Why? What did I do?"

"Now!"

Optimus heard Nightshaft sigh behind him, and saw her walk the long way around him. He had a feeling she had been through this process before. She reached the mech, folded her arms, and sneered, "What?" He raised his head, a plastic smile upon his blue face.

"What are these unfamiliars doing in the base?"

"'Non and Vixen brought 'em in," she replied, shrugging.

"Really? And where are they now?"

"Repairs, of course. Them and these four were fighting Predacons."

"What?"

"You heard me…sir." she said, adding significant sarcastic emphasis to the last word. But her sentence still carried a serious tone. The nameless mechanoid narrowed his optics. His mind seemed to be going over a few things.

His anger seemed to dissipate. He was mulling this information over in his head, as if it were unusual or unheard of.

"You, Grey, should I get the boss?" said a macaw-bot behind the wolf. His plumage was bright red and his optics small, beady and black. He seemed particularly interested in the three Transmetal/Optimal bots.

'Grey' nodded.

"Awright! Man, this party gonna be trippin'!"

The macaw transformed into beast mode and soar to the roof of the cave and through a chimney. The wolf's optics were now wide with worry. Optimus, on the other hand, had his own mission to worry about.

"You're not in charge here?" inquired Optimus, who felt somewhat annoyed that he was being pushed around by someone who did not have proper authority. He lowered his arms and decisively rose to his feet, nearly cracking his head on a stalactite, and stated, "My name is Optimus Primal. I am on an important mission, and I wish to speak with your commander."

The bot raised his brows, unimpressed by the disturbance of his thoughts.

"Our commander," he said with a slight sneer, "will be here shortly, let me assure you." He seemed a little more relaxed knowing that Optimus and his crew were not on the offensive…at the moment. He continued with a more friendly but formal tone, "For now, you'll have to deal with me. The lieutenant."

Optimus nodded respectfully. "Does my crew have permission to stand?" he asked, with a raised brow and a small smile. The wolf-mech nodded. Optimus heard three sighs of relief from behind him, as well as the mechanics of his friends' joints as they rose.

"I'm afraid you now have me at a disadvantage, lieutenant. What's your name?" Optimus asked.

It took a while for the mech to respond. He tilted his head, as if considering Optimus for any hint that this new bot might use his name against him.

"Greyback." he finally answered.

Optimus held out his enormous orange hands in greetings, unsurprised by the look the gesture received. Many times on Cybertron he received similar looks brought on by his unusual size. Greyback took a finger, and the two mechs shook hands.

Quite suddenly, a male voice came from behind a stalagmite from behind the observing Maximals.

He hopped through the cave towards them with such speed, it was not until he ended up in front of the wolf bot, panting, that they saw he was a jerboa.

"Grey…" he said with some difficulty, a strong Earthen-Australian accent penetrating the breaths he was taking, "…trouble. Scanners've just picked up five Preds comin' in fast. They don't look happy, mate."

Greyback's optics immediately widened again. "They can't come near the entrance. Send two scouts out there, and lead them b **away /b ** from the mountainside. I'll be there as soon as I can. GO!"

Organised chaos ensued almost straight away. Once again, Optimus and his friends seemed to be lost amongst the crowd, moving in and amongst each other as they headed towards their stations for this particular situation. It was as if they weren't there. Cheetor noticed Greyback running down yet another tunnel, Nightshaft in hot pursuit.

"Optimus!" he called, pointing to the wolf. Optimus nodded and signalled for his crew to follow them, regardless of anything going on around them. The Axalon commander would not be left hanging. These Maximals, whether under his command or not, were his responsibility. He had been sent to retrieve stasis pods: which meant the protoforms, activated or not.

He chased the wolf down a different corridor, which do doubt led to the other side of the mountain.

---

Outside, Optimus approached Greyback from behind, grabbed his shoulder and turned him lit a spinning top to face him.

"You? What do you think you're doing?"

"This does not concern you…"

"I'm not in a very good mood at the moment, b **lieutenant /b **. Thus far, I have not been able to speak to anyone in charge, and I refuse to be misinformed."

Greyback growled. i _The nerve of this guy… /i _

"You any good at negotiating?" he asked, gruffly.

"Are you kidding me?" came Rattrap's high-pitched response, "This monkey could negotiate you all into a coma if yeh can stand the listen to 'im that long…"

"Shut up, Rattrap."

Greyback's mood and tolerance was slipping. "If you must…" he said slowly through gritted teeth, "…stay back and keep quiet yourself. Hopefully we won't actually b **need** /b to negotiate...they're the trespassers anyway…"

Optimus look at his comrades uncomfortably when Greyback said that.

They kept quiet, as agreed, and followed the party heading towards a densely vegetated forest area.

---

A little later, after a two minute walk down a well-worn track, they stopped. Someone had heard something up ahead

Cheetor's optics widened with dread as the Predacon party stepped into the light. It was the three that they had encountered soon after their arrival: Gearcrush, Obertron and Serpentia. They were followed by two more in beast mode: a giant, florescent green praying mantis and a jet black raven.

Obertron stepped into a circle of sunlight, and Greyback did the same. Despite the obvious urge to rip each other's sparks out of their compartments the two nodded to each other. Optimus made it clear to his own Maximals to stay back in the darkest shadows.

"I'm sure you have guessed why we have summoned you," said the brawling, dramatic voice of the Predacon fuzor, "we are most disappointed that our treaty has been violated."

"Stuff it, moth-breath. If you insist on bad-mouthing our friends I may have to bid you good riddance. Why are you really here?"

"We are here…for them…" he said, pointing a long, dishevelled claw at Optimus' party.

"Why?"

"It is not **your** place to ask questions, you unsightly mongrel!" hissed Serpentia, who had been holding back the desire to strike a deadly bite at each of her escapees. Obertron and Greyback continued to stare each other down.

"As I was saying, you malodourous mutt, our truce has been broken. We were attacked by these newcomers, and thus it is our right to…"

He was interrupted by a loud roar from the canopy of leaves above. All fell silent.

A femme bot with a leopard beast mode landed in front of Obertron. The head covered her chest (as per usual for a standard organic transformer), and various beast parts covered the rest of her bosy. She had a gold helmet with cat-like ears, and a long spotted tail that flicked from side to side.

She stood up straight, confident against the larger Predacon menace.

"Ahh, how nice of you to finally join us, commander," Obertron mocked, bowing deeply to the leopard. She folded her arms and remained still.

"Pleasure as always, Obertron. What's all this about?" she asked, obviously in no mood to play around. She had a very "English" accent, and sounded very posh.

"As I was saying to your arrogant pup of a lieutenant, we were wronged by two of your troops."

"How so?"

"Simply…they attacked us."

"From what I've been told, they were defending four innocent Maximals that you had seized against their will."

"They were trespassing. All of them. You know our agreement. No one enters our territory, and we stay off yours."

The femme glanced behind her without rotating her head further than beyond her shoulder. They could not see her whole face, only bright blue optics, but they could tell she was scanning them, somehow.

After a while, she said slowly, "What do you want with them?"

"By our right, we take them in for…'questioning'."

Her optics narrowed. He knew she was not buying it.

"It is not my place to say," he continued, "but either they come with us, or we will be at liberty to attack, by right of the truce agreement."

"You can't do that…" she said.

"Oh, but I can. They are not b **your /b ** Maximals. Therefore, they must come with us!"

"No. Because they b **are /b ** mine."

"Say what now?" asked Rhinox, quietly. _Good question,_ thought Optimus.

"They're new upgraded models. Something I'm sure you lot want to get your mitts on. However, like I said, they're with me." she replied to Obertron.

"And how, pray tell, did you acquire such upgrades from what is available on this miserable planet?"

"That's not for you to know…"

"I must warn you…if these new bots are b **not /b ** with you…they will come with us. Otherwise, we are at war…once again."

"Once again." she said. Optimus was surprised that she would sacrifice such a fragile peace for their sakes. It was very Maximal of her. Apparently, the other Maximals were just as surprised. Greyback looked as if he would explode.

The leopard femme walked casually towards Obertron. She suddenly grabbed his collar plate and pulled his face close to hers, so that only he could hear her when she whispered menacingly into his audio receptor, "Tell Khan his twisted little game has crossed several lines already. I've seen you both in our quadrants for the past several weeks, dismantling our communication posts. We were already at war. And if he pushes me, he knows what to expect…"

This seemed to instil some fear in Obertron. Something his leader had once told him about their foes came hurtling out of the back of his mind. She finally let him go, and he backed away.

"Very well," he said, regaining his composure, "as you know, each side will have a quiet period of 30 megacycles. We shall meet again, Jagna."

Her expression of abhorrence remained unchanged.

"Predacons, return to base!"

"And fuel up?" asked the raven Predacon with a grin.

"Indeed…" replied Obertron. They started their retreat, but the mantis stayed where it was.

"Annissssssss, what are you waiting for?" Serpentia snapped at the large insect.

"Why should we wait for 30 megacycles? If we are at war, I should feast now!" The Maximals leant back slightly at her menacing hunger.

"Gearcrush squish stupid insect! Bat say base now! Eat there."

Disgruntled, the mantis withdrew, as did all five Predacons. Once they were out of range, the leopard named Jagna sighed deeply, and allowed her posture to slump forward in relief.

" b **What /b ** the slagging hell was b **that /b **?!"

The observers were snapped out of their daze by Greyback's furious enquiry.

He marched up to his leader, outraged, flung her round to face him and grabbed her by the shoulders. Optimus could see her face now. Her optics were big and piercing, and she had a very cat-ish face. And she looked young. Younger than him, at least.

Greyback started to shake her, hoping the madness would spill out of her ears if he did it hard enough.

"You would have us go to war for these…these… b **them /b **?!"

With a snarl, the femme pushed Greyback off her. Still ignoring Optimus and his crew, she brushed herself off, and replied,

"Had I said they were not with us, Greyback, they would have been taken to Predacon headquarters. Tell me, Grey, would you have such an uncertain fate bestowed upon anyone?" She had moved close to him, and her tone was serious, solemn. His expression softened.

"No," he replied, lowering his head.

"Mhm."

She began to walk back the way they came from the mountain base. Optimus took this opportunity to finally confront the commander of this group of stranded Maximals.

He stood in front of her, blocking her path. She stopped, raised a brow ridge, and slowly looked up at him. He smiled down at her, which had become an automatic reaction for the looks he received.

"Yes?" she asked after a moment's exchange of eye contact.

"I am Optimus Primal. Commander of the Warpship Hercules. I must speak with you, commander, I…"

She held up a hand, not looking at him. After 10 seconds, she shot up a look at him that gave him chills. Her optics were as thin as slate.

"You…" she began, her voice laced with contempt, "…have done quite enough, thank you."

And with that, she casually walked under him between his legs. There enough room, and she had urgent matters to attend to. Fed up, Optimus Primal followed her. His Maximals were left staring at her Maximals. Greyback was calmer than he was a few minutes ago, but still seething, shooting the new Maximals dirty looks. Feeling awkward, Rhinox summoned Cheetor and Rattrap to follow after Optimus.

Once they had left, Greyback, clutched his head in his hands and let out a wolfish moan. Nightshaft had been observing quietly the whole time, and came up to the wolf bot and asked quietly,

"We're in trouble, aren't we?"

"Big trouble. With a capital P…" he added darkly.

---

"Miss, please…just answer the question…"

"Are you deaf, or just plain ignorant?"

"Blackarachnia, please…"

"Am I alone here? I've told you three times already!"

"For the last time, we…"

"Bite me!"

A wave of uproars echoed through the great hall where the Maximal Elders continued to question Blackarachnia on her authenticity as a Maximal interrogator. The Maximal side were outraged that Claymor would have the nerve to ask, and the Predacons were just plain insulted that this fiery female defected from their side. It wasn't anything to do with what was going on, but a time of uproar was the best time to express one's anger without being thrown out of the delegation.

Silverbolt was particularly displeased with the Maximal elder's accusation. The only reason Claymor was getting away with such insults was because Ultra Magnus was not present. Diamond Nine continued to protest to Claymor about certain personal rights and insulting their own interrogator. Soundwave, however, seemed to be enjoying himself. He continued to smile in that creepy way he had been doing for the past four weeks. That was how long this had been going on and off: the Council of Elders were not well known for the decisiveness, but rather for dragging things out longer than was necessary. It was mostly due to Ultra Magnus' repeated absences. He never told anyone where he was going, or when. Therefore, all meetings were delayed until his return. Today, however, Claymor decided the meeting should go ahead. Of course, Diamond Nine insisted they wait once more for Ultra Magnus, but since Soundwave uttered no protest (nor agreement) it went ahead.

"Order!" yelled Diamond Nine. It took a little more time for the room to quiet down than if it were Ultra Magnus giving the order. She huffed, and asked the bots in the hall, "Do we feel that Claymor's methods are necessary? We recruited Unit Blackarachnia as an interrogator for Megatron's trial, and yet, here we are, interrogating her! What does it matter what faction she is? The whole point of the upcoming trial is that Megatron is a traitor to Cybertron! To all transformers, Maximals and Predacons alike, who wish for peace in our galaxy," many of the Predacons muttered incoherently, but she did not notice, "This meeting was supposed to be a private one, to inquire about what Megatron might have said. It hasd now been blown out of proportion, and for what? I ask?" Blackarachnia smiled at the larger femme. Not many people were sympathetic towards the spider, if only because she was a former Predacon. "With my authority as a Maximal Elder," Diamond continued, "I call for an immediate dismissal of this public fiasco, and return to the **original** plan…" she said to Claymor in particular.

There was a mutter of agreement from both sides. The trail of Megatron certainly wasn't disclosed from public knowledge, but many Cybertronians wished to leave the good stuff till the trial itself.

"All in favour?" inquired Diamond Nine, raising her hand. Soundwave lazily raised his, to the surprise of many, including Blackarachnia. Even she, who could sense what people were thinking a mile off, could not determine who's side he was on.

Soundwave had undertaken an upgrade several centuries ago, after Decepticons were granted amnesty. He was not a Predacon, like his old friend Ravage had become, but his physical appearance had certainly changed. While he still obtained the monotonic, droning voice he had always possessed, they had removed his mask. Hence, why he was now able to smile. Nobody liked this very much. He was much more creepy and sinister now that he had the power of expression. His alt mode was, too, different, simply for the purpose of the upgrade. All of his attachments, save ravage, had been destroyed by bounty hunters after the Great Wars, but somehow Soundwave escaped. It took him a while to get accepted back on Cybertron, formerly being the original Megatron's right-hand bot. But somehow, no one is sure why, he managed to wriggle his way into the Council of Elders. Probably because he was one of the only remaining Decepticons, and it would have looked good to have at least on 'former bad guy' now on the side of right…much to many Autobots' and Maximals' protest.

Yet there he was, observing all before him, now siding with a Maximal Elder. He caught Blackarachnia's eye once more, and smiled again. It was the only thing she had ever known that could make her skin crawl.

"Sorry, Diamond, but you need approval of at least three Council members to do that, and I say 'Nay'. And no one can overrule except…"

"Overruled!" came a familiar, booming voice. Heads turned to see Ultra Magnus storm through the steel doorway towards the council panel.

"And just what is going on here? I'm away not two days, and this is what you get up to, Claymor."

"We were merely eager to continue with this meeting so that the trial (somethings) may ensue, Ultra Magnus." the slender mech replied, innocently. Diamond Nine scowled at him.

"That is not up to you, I'm afraid," declared Ultra Magnus, "I agree with Diamond Nine, this has gone on for too long. You are all dismissed."

"Hey…how long have you been here?" Claymor asked suspiciously.

"Long enough…" Ultra Magnus quietly replied. He caught eyes with Soundwave, and his blue optics narrowed. He never did and never would trust that Decepticon.

He turned his enormous self to face Blackarachnia and Silverbolt, who were just leaving with the others.

"Hang on, you two. I request a private meeting with you. Nothing Council-related, don't you worry, this is private. I'll see you in my chambers in two megacycles.

Still seated, Soundwave watched Ultra Magnus leave through the Elders' exit.

_Negative, Ultra Magnus. Nothing here is private…_

---

Outside, once the area was clear of nosey delegates, Blackarachnia grumbled, "The nerve of that guy. Can you believe it Bolt? And to think I'd actually be treated the same as any of you Maximals here!" she exclaimed, raising her arms into the air as if praying it would all go away.

"Do not fret, my dearest. You are a Maximal in my eyes…" Silverbolt said lovingly, taking her hands in his and holding them close to him. She immediately yanked them away.

"Bleugh. You and your drivel. And not here, bone head…" he withdrew sadly. The spider femme looked left and right, and behind her.

She grabbed his collar plate and hurled him into a small, dead-end corridor, which was very dimly lit, smacking him gently into the wall.

"Okay. Now is good…" she said, smirking playfully. She grabbed the back of his head and pulled it down towards hers, and locked their lips together. Though surprised at first, Silverbolt quickly warmed up to this little game. He held her in close embrace, unwilling to let go. This was the first time he had been close to his love in a week, as they had both been very busy regarding each other's new Cybertronian professions.

After a long while, Blackarachnia pushed her puppy away from her, and walked backwards in a seductive manner. The nice girl was gone, and now the girl she knew he fell for had come out to play. She beckoned him with her finger, slowly…

The bird dog growled softly. He walked towards her, unfurled his wings and created a sort of tent around them. He began to lean in closer when…

"Silverbolt!"

That made them both jump. They both stood to attention as a patrol bot named Blitz rolled towards them in his alt mode of a Cybertronian forklift. They heard him grunt in annoyance.

"Do you guys mind? I'm trying to work here. If I hadn't noticed you in that hallway, you'd've been crated and halfway to New Iacon by now," he exclaimed irritably.

"And just why would they want a corridor moved, buck tooth?" Blackarachnia asked, also annoyed.

"Beats me, I'm just doin' my job. So beat it!"

"You cannot speak to her like that!" growled Silverbolt, stepping in front of her. The spider femme rolled her optics.

"Yeah, well **you** can't speak to **me** like that, bub! You beast bots think you're all that, well you're no better than the rest of us, no matter who you're friends are. Now for the last time, get outta here!"

He charged past them, making them jump out if his way. The watched him turn the corner into their private corridor, cursing something about 'snooty security bots'.

"Ugh. Commoner. C'mon, bird brain, we have one and a half megacycles to kill till we meet the big M."

"Where shall we go, beloved?"

"I have an idea…" she replied, winking.

---

Back on Earth, mass confusion filled the mountain lair. Bots in beast and robot mode were muttering to each other about the events that ensued earlier that day. The atmosphere was tense around Optimus and his crew, who were still believed the culprits responsible for this so-called new war.

The leopard femme was pacing, breathing deeply. Optimus watched her closely. She kept glancing over at them, not accursedly like the other bots, but she seemed to be considering what to do with them. He caught her optics: he recognised something within them, and it seemed she did too.

After a brief second she broke away, took one more pace and stood before her fellow bots.

"It's a grim day, Maximals. Very grim. The Beast Wars…a war we have all heard tell about, a war the datatracks we recovered describe so vividly…has started again. For years we've managed to live alongside the Predacons of this planet with some degree of peace. And I stress the word 'some'. Unfortunately, we've been expecting this for a long time now. As you all know, the Predacons have been repeatedly spotted in our sectors, doing Primus knows what. And you all remember that…'incident' not long ago…"

There was a mutter from the crowd. _So they have been anticipating a war_, thought Optimus.

"…and now we have some newcomers. Something that hasn't happened for a while…" the look she gave them this time was humble, and almost welcoming, "…they are not to blame for any of this. Kahn has been planning this was since the beginning. They are merely the catalysts. But they're now with us."

Every pair of optics was on them.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," snapped Rattrap.

"Shut up, Rat Face…" Cheetor said, elbowing the Transmetal rat.

"Nomad, Streakhorn, contact the other bases,"

"Other bases?" Rhinox asked, confused. Jagna ignored him.

"Tell them Plot Omega has been deployed."

The two Maximals, a dromedary camel and a gazelle, both nodded and headed towards what Rhinox assumed to be the control centre. Their console had looked awfully familiar…

"Skylark, tell all field units to return to home base. It's not a good night to be out."

Skylark, a tawny owl femme bot, stood up and said, "On it boss. Need me to reboot the systems for Omega?" Jagna nodded.

"Uh, mind if I come?" Rhinox piped in. The owl raised a brow ridge, very surprised. He scratched his head, "Well, if we're a team now, I should get to know this base, and your computers. I am a tech after all…"

"That's cool with me, rhino. Jag?" replied Skylark. The leopard nodded, and Rhinox followed the flier to the control centre.

"Sandskimmer, forward." Jagna commanded. A mech with exceedingly long legs and a stout torso stepped forward. It was the jerboa they saw earlier. He even talked fast.

"Yeah Jag what can I do anything you command commander command me and I'm there it'll b done faster than you can say pan galactic…"

"Quiet, you," the leopard interrupted, smiling, "I need to go outside and activate the shield generator's main auxiliary power units. They're quite a way away and you're the fastest here…"

A loud cough was heard coming from the crowd. It was Cheetor.

"Sorry, but I could outrun him in my sleep!" he gloated. Rattrap slapped his head. That cat never knew when to keep his mouth shut.

"Oh yeah?" retorted the jerboa Sandskimmer, "What makes ye think that sonny boy eh? Ye don't look so hot to me, nosirree!"

"Well, for starters, I'm a Cheetah. And then there's my turbo-accelerator booster jets," his voice reeked of narcissism, which made Sandskimmer instantly dislike him.

"Want me to prove it, you furry jack in the box?"

"Ye're on mate lessgo lessgo after 1 2…HA! Eat my dust furball!"

And he was off. Up a flight of stairs, with beast mode Cheetor in hot pursuit, crying, "NU-uh! Eat **mine**!"

"Um, **excuse me**! The power units?!" Jagna sighed, determining it was useless, and made her way down to the two remaining new mechs, Optimus and Rattrap.

"He's yours, is he?"

"Unfortunately," replied Rattrap, "but yeh get used to him…eventually…Oh, s'cuse me, where are my manners. Name's Rattrap," he grinned and gave her his hand as a semi-formal greeting. She took it, slowly.

---

Later, in a desolate part of the planet, in a secret underground lair…

Obertron and Serpentia looked at each other awkwardly. They were standing outside a large steel door in their own underground secret base. They said not a word to each other too loudly, and were battling over who would enter first.

"You are second-in-command, are you not? **You** go in, you wretched woman!" the ape/bat snarled at the cobra.

"And as ssssecond-in-command, I **order** you insssside now!" she hissed back.

All of a sudden, the door flew open, silencing them both. They scowled at each other once more, and entered together.

A terrible wheezing was filling the room. It was as if the occupant were on constant life support. But this was no new to the Predacons. It had been like this as long as they could remember.

"Well?" rattled the gasping voice, "Have you captured them?"

"No," Obertron replied, not with his usual brawling smugness…his tone was static and monotonous.

The wheezing became quicker and heavier. "Then you have failed. Did you at least discover the location…(he breathed in coarsely)…of the Maximal base…whilst on their ground?"

"We believe we musssst have come closssse, for they were very sssswift meeting usssss,"

"That is not good enough!" the voice bellowed, causing it to choke, cough and splutter. Obertron and Serpentia cautiously approached to help, but they were hissed at and forced to withdraw.

The breathing then become slow and rhythmic, like a dull drum beat for a rowing team.

"Did you find anything out about them?" the voice asked.

"Nothhhhing. The ffffeline kept them out of sssssight."

"No matter," replied the voice, "this new development might prove useful…"

There was a silence. The wheezing has momentarily ceased. The two Predacons leaned forward with anticipation.

"…Bring me the one called…Optimus Primal…"


	3. Escapades Pt 1

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 3: **Escapades pt 1

Blackarachnia and Silverbolt felt very odd waiting outside Ultra Magnus' personal chambers. The only other times they had ever seen him were the council quarters, a small but meeting room and occasionally in the corridor. He never seemed to show much interest in him, at least no more than anyone else on the planet.

They looked at each other from time to time, exchanging confused looks, blank stares and shrugs. They had been waiting for nearly 15 cycles: Ultra Magnus was late letting them in. Though that didn't surprise them in the least, it was still frustrating. What could be so important that he would request a private consultation?

They surprisingly stood to attention when they noticed him appear beside them quite suddenly, smiling.

"Man, you sure are quiet for a big guy, Ultra Magnus," commented Blackarachnia. Ultra Magnus chuckled slightly.

"That's what I get after centuries in the field. No one ever notices me! Please, come in," he beckoned them into his quarters, "I apologise for my tardiness, but it was a matter I could not avoid. It was only supposed to last one megacycle…" he muttered.

"And what was it?" inquired Silverbolt. Ultra Magnus shot him a 'butt out' look, as kindly as he could.

"Top secret I'm afraid. And speaking of which…" he continued, looking very seriously at both of them, "What I am about to tell you does not leave this room, understand?"

"Understood," they replied in unison.

He nodded at them, pleased.

"You two have fared extremely well over the last three stellar cycles. I'm not saying I expected you not to, but considering the pressure of the publicity the Beast Wars received, well…I feel I need to say no more.

"Now, as you know, you were both kept here because you were need to ensure the security and interrogation of Megatron, which is why you were denied vessel with Optimus Primal and the rest of your crew."

They both nodded, a little sadly. They thought that after all they'd done for Cybertron, a plane they didn't even know at the time, thy would be granted back to Earth with their comrades.

"I am telling you now that that was all a lie."

They looked at him, astonished.

"So, you weren't wowed by my people skills?" asked Blackarachnia, smirking.

"I'm afraid not…" he replied. She looked miffed, even though it was an accurate observation, "…the reason you were both kept here was because of me." he said, simply and solemnly.

"But why, sir?" asked Silverbolt.

"It is a rather grim matter. Involving the Tripredicus Council."

At the mention of the name, all three transformers sneered. The Tripredicus Council were notorious for their uncanny ability to extend their influence into power structures seemingly beyond their greedy reach and talent when it came to manipulating events in their favor. They had managed to infiltrate the politics of Cybertron, and even wriggled their way into the Beast Wars, albeit briefly.

"We believe that there is a mole within our organization. We don't know for sure, but the Tripredicus Council may have received information regarding you and your comrades since your return to Cybertron. Blackarachnia, you were once close with on of their key agents, known to you as Tarantulas…"

"Yeah, thanks for reminding me…" she muttered as Silverbolt growled bitterly.

"I'll need you two to infiltrate their operations. I know it's asking a lot, but Blackarachnia, I happen to know hat this is somewhat of a…hobby of yours…no offense…"

"None taken," she replied sarcastically, placing a claw on her hip.

"And Silverbolt, you have certainly proved yourself a devoted soldier. Plus, I've heard it's best to keep you two together, to prevent any 'accidents'…" he grinned at them both, and they returned it.

"So when do we start? And where?" inquired the Transmetal 2 widow.

"You will know in time. This meeting was just to let you know what is stake here," he said in a dead sinister tone.

Blackarachnia winked at the old Autobot and Silverbolt saluted. They exited Ultra Magnus' quarters to leave him wit his privacy.

What they did not notice, however, as a miniature falcon-like drone taking refuge outside above the door. The sound readings on it's optical visor indicated that it still recorded the departing Maximals footsteps, and their owners' quiet conversation. Once the door closed, it took off silently down the opposite corridor.

---

It had been a few days back on Earth…strange, but rather enjoyable. Despite the looming threat of war, the Maximals in the mountain hideaway were cheerful, pleasant and willing to show the new Maximals around. All but a few. For one, Greyback stuck his nose up at any mention of the intruding foursome, firmly sticking to his theory that they were to blame for the inevitable war. A few surly-looking bots avoided them if they could, but they held no grudge. And then there was their leader, Jagna. She seemed welcoming enough at first, and yet she avoided giving them too much information about…anything, really.

For instance, Rhinox could not find his new tech-head soul mate, Skylark, one day, and asked the nearby leopard how to activate the secondary control panel, she eyed him up and down…and walked away.

"That's just plain rude!" exclaimed Rattrap, who always found something to complain about, "Why won't she tell us nuttin'? Are we not worthy?" he asked, sarcastically.

"Actually, that's probably it," observed Optimus.

"Oh, really? Well, in that case, we should go back to our own base and forget about these yahoos…"

"Negative, Rattrap. We have an agreement with these Maximals. They agreed to take us in rather than hand us over to Predacons. We owe them our lives."

"Yeah, and they ain't too happy about that…"the rat muttered, half to himself. Optimus ignored him.

Elsewhere in the base, Jagna was observing two Maximal femme-bots; Vixen, and one named Sleek, whose beast mode was a swan, practicing hand-to-hand combat. They were not doing well. They were both very fragile, and unwilling to hit each other.

"Come one, you two, you're bloody hopeless!" cried an exasperated Jagna, for possibly the second time in an hour.

"C'mon, Jag," complained Vixen, "what makes you think we'll be fighting b **each other /b ** in battle?"

"That's not the point, Vix…" replied Jagna, pinching the ridge of her nose, "Picture someone else's face on your opponent…"

"Who?" inquires Sleek, rustling her pure-white feathers.

"It doesn't matter. This is only training. Ugh," She temporarily gave up for the moment, and said, "Take five, then come back and I'll show you how it's done."

They departed, leaving their leader rubbing her forehead. A moment later, Nightshaft peeped in from on of the tunnel doors. She saw the leopard headed towards the equipment table to sort out some training weapons.

She approached her slowly, her hands behind her back.

"Hey."

"Hey, Night."

"How's training going?"

"I'm trying to explain the principles of combat to Sleek and Vixen. Need I say more?"

They both laughed.

"Listen, about these newcomers…" Nightshaft began, awkwardly, "They seem to fitting in well, huh?"

"Mhm," Jag replied, distractedly.

"So…do you trust 'em?"

"Nope," said Jagna, quickly and firmly, picking up a spear-like object and walked to the make-shift arena.

"Right. Figures…" muttered the spider monkey.

"And what's that supposed to mean, exactly?"

"Well, you're not easy pleased, are you? I mean, you never seem to see any good in anyone when you first meet 'em…" Jagna interrupted her.

"It's not that…I see they mean what they say…but I have my reasons for being 'picky', you know." She raised a brow at her comrade.

"Yeah, but you won't tell us what it is!" Nightshaft said impatiently. She backed off when the leopard turned her head. That had always been a sensitive issue. "Sorry…"

"Nah. I know what you mean. But I can already tell that Primal character is a bit too trusting. From my experience, that can be a bad thing as well as a good."

"But…"

"That'll do, Nightshaft. They're back already…"

She nudged her head towards Vixen and Sleek, who had just reappeared, chattering to each other.

"Alright you two, enough monkeying around…" she winked at Nightshaft, who crossed her arms and smirked, "In all seriousness now, here's what you need to know…"

---

Back on Cybertron, whilst the traitor and the fuzor were conversing with Ultra Magnus, the dragon slumbered in his lair.

He was always under heavy surveillance, but in the shadows of his subconscious mind none could enter and observe.

Deep within the bowels of his mind, Megatron observed the world outside, as he would desire it.

He saw Earth. He witnessed the destruction of his greatest enemy, Optimus. But there was something different about the vision this time. It was no longer pre-historic earth, but the era in which his namesake aimed to conquer the energy the planet held. And his greatest enemy was no longer Primal, but Prime.

He snapped awake in his own head. The tyrant had learned not to appear awake when left alone, for the Maximal guards would surely sedate him anyway. Snoozing by his own accord meant that he would have free thoughts.

Why had his ideal world been altered to that that which was clearly his ancestors'? he cared only of what the past's effects would have on the future only…what future, anyway?

He grumbled in his sleep. A Maximal guard outside heard this, and looked in. The villain remained still, in stand-by it seemed. He resumed his previous position.

This day had been like any other day: being hauled about in a container unit he could barely wriggle in, being questioned by the traitor Blackarachnia and her puppy, and being hauled back into his isolation cell.

Or so that's what he thought it was.

Tonight, someone was with him. His spark pulsated faster than usual as it sensed another presence. He did not notice before that his spark had changed since he merged it with the original Megatron's…or had it changed at all?

The spark grew and grew until it engulfed the optimal dragon in a cocoon of energy. None would hear within the spark but him. He opened his eyes, and yelled horrifically, unaware that this whole ordeal would go unnoticed. Then a voice, deep and hoarse, spoke to him and with him.

"I am Megatron…"

---

"Shouldn't you be gone by now?"

"Always so eager to be rid of me, Grey…"

"I'm just saying, they're expecting you at a certain time, you'd better be there."

"I could send you, of course…"

"But, I…don't look at me like that!"

Irritable little spats like these occurred once or so a day between Jagna and her pushy canine lieutenant Greyback. Cheetor was reminded many times of Optimus and Rattrap when they started working together. They were either over the smallest or biggest things.

Several hours after overseeing some training sessions, the Maximal leader was preparing to leave for another one of their bases.

"So…where are you headed, exactly?" Cheetor inquired, curiously.

"I have a rendezvous with our operatives at base three…" Jagna replied.

"How many bases have you got?"

"…Three."

"Oh…" he replied sheepishly, "Hey, uh, I never asked: what do you call this place?"

"Pangaea One," she answered proudly, smiling as she looked around her home.

"What about the one you're going to?"

"Still pending," answered Greyback. He shrugged, "…it's fairly new."

"Mind if I come with?" the cheetah asked Jagna eagerly.

"Dunno. Can you swim?"

"Uhhh…not exactly…"

"Then no. Sorry. See you in a few days." And with a quick smile, she left without another word.

"She's not trying to avoid you, she's being genuine," Greyback commented on Cheetor's gutted expression, "that base is located about a quarter mile inland…from a sea cave…" he grinned at the cheetah's puzzled look. "Only those who can swim can get there…which is why it's pretty much empty most of the time…" he stated, raising a brow.

"Oh, and the bossy kitten can swim, huh?" came Rattrap's annoyingly high voice as he entered the room.

"It's not the beast mode, mousey, every creature's gotta learn to swim. You ever tried?"

"Nu-uh. I said it before, and I'll say it again: I ain't no water-rat."

Greyback gave him a funny look, "You bots are weird…"

Rattrap didn't have enough time to formulate a witty response before he realized the canine had left.

"Man! Some o' these bots are jus' so uptight! What's they're problem anyway?"

"War's enough to get anyone ticked off, Rat Face…" sneered the Transmetal Two cheetah.

"What's gummin' your gears, kid? This ain't b **our /b ** war. I swore off havin' the words 'beast' and 'wars' in the same sentence…" He looked curiously at the feline, who was staring at a drop of water about to detach itself from a stalactite. "Somethin' wrong, pussy cat?"

"Yeah. I'm bored," Cheetor stated, simply, "I wanna go out and do something. Anything…" he thought for a moment. Then his face lit up as he had an idea. "Let's go see Chack and Oona!"

"Woah, woah, woah! Pause fer a sec! Much as I'd like the see the littl' knuckle-draggers again, in case yeh hadn't noticed, this ain't a good time teh be wondrin' around outside alone, kiddo."

"You've got b **me /b **…" Cheetor began.

"Oh, b **well /b **, in that case, let's go!" Rattrap said responded in a sing-song voice.

"Aw right!" Cheetor transformed into beast mode and started to run. But despite the fact his legs were moving, he wasn't going anywhere. He turned his head to se that Rattrap had placed a foot on his tail.

"Ever heard o' sarcasm, yeh metal moron? Sheesh, it's a wonder you cats survive!"

"Careful who you say that to, you might become an entrée…"

The Transmetals turned to see Nightshaft approaching them in beast mode.

"We've got quite a few felines here, and they can be quite touchy. b **Believe /b **me…" she added, rolling her optics.

"Heh. Don't I know it…" replied Rattrap, casting an accusing glance at Cheetor, who was scowling at him.

"Ya mind, Ratty? You're cutting off my circulation…" Rattrap lifted his foot lazily. He didn't realise it as first, but Cheetor's legs were still going. Once his tail was released, he ran head-long into a computer console. The rodent and the primate burst out laughing. Shaking and rubbing his head, Cheetor wandered about the room, sulking.

"You know, if you really want to go out, I could be your guide. I know a few short cuts the Preds don't…and neither does anyone here," Nightshaft said, winking. Cheetor's ears pricked up, and he looked hopefully at Rattrap, who hesitated.

"Eh, I dunno Medusa," he snickered slightly as Nightshaft defensively fixed her 'hair', "I ain't usually one to encourage the breakage of rules…"

They both raised their brows at him. He lowered his head and shook his hands.

"Nah, nah, seriously, kids, I could get in big…"

He looked up and saw that the two were already halfway up the stairs. He heaved a long, heavy sigh, and followed them.

"Better make sure they don't kill themselves…" he muttered as he transformed into taxi mode. A hidden pair of optics narrowed as they followed the trio outside.

---

Meanwhile, Rhinox was rather enjoying himself getting to know Pangaea One's system computers…and Skylark.

When last on Earth, the only other tech head that he could refer to for observations and exchange of info was Blackarachnia…but that was never pleasant.

But now he had someone to make intelligent exchanges with h actually enjoyed. She knew almost as much as him in terms of basic component structures, quantum mechanics and improvising weapons and gadgets.

He also learned that the console he recognised was the one from the Axalon. The tawny owl was happy to let him know how they got it.

Most of their equipment was salvaged, she explained, this console was left in the hollow of a volcano elsewhere. He gruffly explained the history of said console, which interested her greatly.

"Wow. So this old thing has a lot more history than I thought…" she said, running her hand gently over it.

"Yup. Been through a lot, we have…"

"No, man, I mean there's gotta be a tonne more history left in its databanks I haven't accessed yet!" she cried gleefully.

"You managed to bypass my codes?" he asked, astonished.

"Most of them. I must say, you did a good job with them," she answered, smiling. He returned it.

"So have you."

"Hey!" she jumped up and down excitedly, apparently something that did not happen often with her, as a few bots stared at her, "This thing was yours, yeah? Think you could dig up that memory?"

"What?"

"Oh, come on, please! I've been working with so little on this thing for so long! I've had to figure everything out for myself. It would be so great to have something in front of me to work from…"

She looked at him imploringly, her optics big and shiny. He could not resist those.

"Sure. It'll be just like in the good ol' days," he said, using that term lightly.

She grinned broadly, and they set to work.

Optimus, in the meantime, was getting to know some of the other Maximals. It was true what Nightshaft said, Accinon did suffer from mood swings, brought upon by nothing, it seemed. Other than that, she was quite pleasant and informative.

"If you don't mind my asking," Optimus began quietly, after a few days deliberation, "how is it that very few people here know what a protoform is?"

"Well, actually, Ginger (she had decided to nickname him 'Ginger' because of his enormous orange hands), that's kinda tricky to explain. I mean, I've only recently learned much about them myself."

_ i __What?[/i_

"I'm afraid I don't understand…"

"Neither did I, big guy. Neither did I..."

Optimus decided to, once again, drop it. There were some things on this planet that had always confused him, and explanations for them would continue to elude him for some time. Accinon decided to break his contemplation with a suggestion to pass away the time.

"Wanna throw cogs into the lava?"

---

Somewhere, underneath the wretched, barren landscape of a lava pit, something was rising. Rising, hotter and faster than the mighty magma itself…tempers.

The Predacons were at each others throats in their secret underground base, the thought of death by lava a lot more appealing than being eaten alive by your own comrades.

"Sssssilenccce!" yelled Serpentia, banging a fist on their prism console. Of course, none fell silent until a shock of energy was shot through all in the room. A snake-like creature hissed happily as it lay perched on a high stool next to Serpentia.

"Thanksssss Elektra. At leassst sssome of uss have sssome classsssss…" she sneered at her so-called comrades. The other serpent Elektra, a moray eel femm-bot, slithered to the ground and transformed. She clicked her jaw menacingly at the others, and sparks flew out of her hand as a warning.

"We've been at this far too long, for Pitt's sake!" yelled Anniss, the praying mantis, "We could have been at war days ago, why do we wait?"

"Because you do…what you're told!"

All Predacons: Serpentia, Elektra, Anniss, Colosuss (a black bear mech), Fleeter (a female mosquito) and a vulture named Crowbeak all stood to attention as their disfigured was rolled in, suspended in a life-preserving force field, on a trolley.

The gasping and wheezing were all that could be heard. The bots who brought him in, a mech with a beast mode of a shark/canine fuzor, and a frilled lizard femme-bot push a button each on either side simultaneously, which activated their leader's optical visor. It glowed yellow and they stared at their so-called troops.

"What plan…have you devised?" he asked, taking a gravel-in-a-blender breath every few words.

Colossus, in beast mode, huffed and activated the hologram projector above the prismic console. Combined with the spherical hologram, it looked like a giant, green, glowing trophy.

The plan's specs thus far were brief, messy, and unacceptable. The figure inside the cylinder suspender began to build up his energy. He started glowing red. And then, all of a sudden, the energy within him exploded outwards, reflection his anger.

"Fools! …This will…not suffice…How humiliatingly sim…plistic…" his anger and energetic outburst made it difficult for him to speak with the enraged inflection he intended.

"Optimus Primal…is not like us…he has the combined power…of a Transmetal…and Optimus Prime's spark…unless…you'd already….forgotten, you mindless……simpletons…"

Many of the Predacons winced. Crowbeak, tactical advisor and aerial assault specialist, resented the implication that he was on the same level as every other (full-bodied) Predacon in the room. However, he was curious about on thing…

"How do you know of this, Kahn?" he asked, feigning the utmost respect.

"I know more…than you think…" replied Kahn, his optical visor narrowing to a thin yellow line amidst the glowing red chamber.

"And how, then, do we deal with such a specimen, Oh great Leader?" he asked, even more sarcastically.

"Only I possess the means…to capture such prey…" Kahn wheezed back, "…you must enter…the vault…" This received a gasp from every soldier.

"You would permit ussss to enter?" hissed his lieutenant.

"Yes…it is time…to end this…blasted 'peace'…that has prolonged my suffering…" He sent another shockwave through the room for hearing someone snicker.

"Thus far…we have exposed many weaknesses…of the Maximals that…we have…shard this dirt ball with….But now...we must expose the newcomers'…"

They all leaned closer to him, awaiting his instructions.

"Here…is how you capture…an Optimus…"

---

"Yeh're lost!"

"I am not!"

"This is, by far, the biggest circle I've walked in my entire life!"

"This was the fastest way to the co-ordinates you gave me, Buck Tooth!"

"Puh-leez! Shortcut my shiny metal exhaust!"

"Shut up, Rattrap."

"Nu-uh, b **you /b ** shut up, spots, this was b **your /b ** idea…"

It had been a megacycle or so since the trio left Pangaea One. Rattrap did not fail to point out that they had passed the rock with star-patterned moss on it three times, already. Everyone; Rattrap, Cheetor and Nightshaft, was on a short fuse.

"I knew we shoulda turned left at grid Alba-Kurk E…" Rattrap muttered under his breath.

"Look, I'm sorry. But a lot has changed since you left. What were you planning on doing, anyway?" inquired the equally frustrated spider monkey.

"We were friends with an early human tribe," explained Cheetor, "particularly two kids, Chack and Oona."

"Oh…" began Nightshaft, awkwardly. She pondered whether to explain to them or not…

"What?" Cheetor asked, wide-eyed.

"Um…well, I doubt that we'll find those two...there are loads of human tribes, and…well…if you knew them from before…" She paused, not knowing if she should continue.

"What?"

"There's no way they could be alive. I'm sorry…"

Cheetor and Rattrap just stared. The cat looked down at the ground, and the rat shook his head. Neither of them could comprehend…

"Humans just don't live as long as us, guys…did you ever think you'd see them again?"

That question snapped a chord in Cheetor's mind. When they first returned to Cybetron, they did not give Earth, or the kids, a second thought. Guilt seeped into his spark like a fatal virus.

"Oh, man…" he exclaimed sadly. Nightshaft looked at the pair sorrowfully. Chack and Oona obviously meant a lot to them.

"So, uh…I wonder how long we've actually been gone…" Rattrap wondered aloud.

"Only three stellar cycles," commented Cheetor.

"Yeah, teh us, kid, but…man, I hate time travel!" he snapped, stamping his foot on the ground in frustration, "There was always some kinda time lag between our two planets, but I thought we got that bug sorted out!"

He began to pace. While annoying, this certainly explained a lot. They would have to return to base and tell Optimus.

Nightshaft suddenly raised her head, alert. She heard something in a nearby bush. She could not see anything, as they were in the undergrowth of a thick forest. She looked at Cheetor and rattrap, and they seemed to have heard it too. They nodded to eac other, and back away slowly.

The rustling of leaves continued, and suddenly…

"Gotcha!"

The three yelled. They transformed into battle mode, ready to fight.

"Oh, for the love o' the Matrix, Night, watch where you point that thing…"

A hand grabbed Nightshaft's long, black, furry tail whip and yanked it out of her hand.

It was Sandskimmer.

"What the heck are you doing here?!" asked Nightshaft, infuriated after her scare.

"I saw you lot headed out a while back," he replied with his usual fast pace, "You know you're not s'posed t'be out here, least of all with two other bots who barely know the place. So I thought it'd be best if I tagged along…" he added, with a slight air of smugness.

"Oh, and you just assumed I couldn't take care of myself?" snapped Nightshaft.

"Too right!" Sandskimmer retorted.

Nightshaft remained defiant. She stood her ground, scowling at Sandskimmer. He was unbearable when he was on his unreachable high horse, which was precisely where he was now.

"Like you wouldn't have jumped at an opportunity to prove yourself, huh?" she jeered. His grin suddenly faded. She had triumphed in reminding him o the several times he had run head long into a situation and had to answer for it.

Rattrap looked between Sandskimmer and Cheetor, and suddenly saw a remarkable similarity between the two. Despite the fact they harboured a distaste for each other at present, they might as well have been the same bot.

"I'm tellin' Jag…" the jerboa stammered.

"Oh, yeah, real mature, Hopscotch…"

"Hey!" yelled Rattrap. They all looked at him. "Dontcha think we should get goin' right about now?"

"You're not going anywhere, vermin!"

All eyes shot upwards. Descending towards them was a giant, menacing vulture, its talons ready to grab Rattrap.

"Duck!" yelled Cheetor.

"Nah, it's a vulture!" yelled Sandskimmer. Nightshaft swore loudly at him as they all hit he deck. The sharp talons grazed Rattrap's back, and they were surprisingly sharp.

"Everyone OK?" he called out. There were a few grunts, and nods. As they got back up, the vulture-bot Crowbeak hovered a few feet off the ground, his enormous black wings disturbing the leaves of the shrub.

Five more Predacons appeared behind him. They were all smirking maniacally.

"Predacons, TERRORISE!"

_ i __To be continued… /i _


	4. Escapades Pt 2

Beast Wars REBIRTH

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 4: **Escapades pt 2

"Predacons, TERRORISE!"

"Holy slag, MOVE IT!" Rattrap yelled as the pack of transforming Predacons disturbed the vegetation and its inhabitants.

Gunfire erupted like a ring of volcanoes around the Maximals. They dodged bullets, kicks, grabs and all sorts of dirty attack moves.

One Predacon in particular with no battle ethics was a black bear by the name of Colossus. He fired blind-siding shots that hit nothing to distract his prey, and then swiped at them with his massive claws. He was very bulky, black and had a hunger in his eye that Rattrap caught a glimpse of as he dodged a swipe.

"For guys who've had a truce, these guys sure know where to hit! Yipe!"

"Rattrap!" Cheetor cried. He darted towards the rat, grabbed him, shoving them both out of the way of a hit from Colossus that would not have missed.

"Thanks, kid. Now go watch yer own back, and take these Preds down!"

The cat smiled broadly and nodded. He transformed into beast mode and spotted a canine Predacon who was looking for something to shoot.

"You wanna target? Try a b**moving**/b target, wolfy!" he yelled.

"I am a **coyote**!" the Predacon screamed back, clearly insulted, "Steelclaw, Terrorise!"

He transformed and snarled at the feline. The head of the coyote split in two and rested in each shoulder, and the mech's head was covered in spikes, framing his face in a menacing way. He drew his weapon (an abnormally large bazooka) and aimed it at Cheetor.

"Catch me if you can!" teased Cheetor. At a blurring speed, he ran circles around the Predacon. After 10 or 20 rotations, Steelclaw got fed up of trying to keep an eye on his adversary and started following Cheetor with his gun, shooting randomly at the ground.

Cheetor could not keep this up forever. He leapt out of the circle, and Steelclaw, not noticing the cat's departure, continued to spin and shoot. Cheetor stood and watched him, slightly amused. Eventually, he got bored and shot the coyote with his quasar canon. The Predacon was hit on the side and span even faster till he landed on the floor in a heap, his head still spinning.

"Yes!" he hollered triumphantly, "Cheetor one; Predacons zero! Rowr!" His triumph was short-lived, however, when a sharp object pierced his back and started draining him of mech fluid.

"Cocky Maximal youth!" shrieked the Predacon above him, whose long, thin sucker was attached to a chord on her forearm-mounted canon, "At least you taste good…"

"Get away, you parasite!" yelled Nightshaft, angrily. Cheetor fell to his knees as soon as he felt the sharp item was jerked out of him. He heard the buzzing of the Predacon who attacked him get quieter as she headed towards the spider monkey.

The Predacon was surprisingly swift, and Nightshaft missed every shot.

"Will you stay still so I can swat you, you pesky mosquito!" the spider monkey snarled.

The aforementioned parasite smirked. "Why don't you stay still so I can enjoy a free meal?"

"What? Agh!" The same object used to suck the energy out of Cheetor was now embedded in Nightshaft's chest, and was performing its duty quickly.

Luckily for Nightshaft, Sandskimmer had narrowly escaped a skirmish with Crowbeak and a frilled lizard. As he ran, he pulled out a small dagger and sliced the cord that attacked the mosquito's sucker from his comrade. The Predacon hissed and buzzed away angrily. Sandskimmer lifted Nightshaft onto his shoulder and moved towards Cheetor.

"Where's your rat, mate?" he asked the cat.

"Getting his butt whooped over here!" Rattrap yelled, running over to the pair. The four Maximals ended up together, Nightshaft draped over Sandskimmer's shoulders, Cheetor still on his knees, and Rattrap's weapon in his hand as he panted and rubbed the many dents he received from the Predacons' shots.

"NOW!" instructed Crowbeak.

The Maximals winced as they awaited something highly explosive…but nothing happened. Or so it seemed. Confused, they all looked around.

Something was wrong.

Someone was missing…

"Cheetor? Cheetor! Where are yeh, spots?" The cat had disappeared.

Rattrap frantically whirled around to find him. He couldn't have pulled off one of his heroic stunts, could he? Not at a time like this…although it certainly would have been accurately characteristic of him.

When he turned around again, Nightshaft was on her knees. But there was no sign of Sandskimmer.

"What the…?"

Nightshaft mouthed something to him. The draining had taken a lot out of her, and her vocal processors had been affected.

_Behind you_, she mouthed desperately.

He tilted his head in puzzlement. He turned, but all he saw was a tree. Its trunk looked a little distorted, but…

"Holy SLAG!"

There was a flurry of dust and leaves, a flash of yellow optics, then everything was black.

--

"Took you long enough…" sneered an impatient Serpentia when the ambush party returned to the Predacon base.

"As if b**you**/b could've done it any faster," retorted Crowbeak, squinting his optics.

"I would not havvvve messssed about with fffancy trickssss…" she hissed back, "It would havvvve been sssswifft and deadly. No gamessss."

The vulture huffed.

"Where are they, then?" the cobra asked.

Crowbeak turned his head and jerked his head, signalling his party to bring in the prisoners.

Rattrap, Cheetor, Nightshaft and Sandskimmer were bound with energy chords on some sort of trolley, like the ones used to move crates or stacks of chairs. The energon bonds around the Transmetals were on a higher frequency, and therefore their hold on them was stronger.

"Fffffour Maxxximalsss? Is that the besssst you could do?" Patthhhetic…But it will do, I sssssupposssse…"

Crowbeak glared at her. "These two were trickier than we anticipated…" he grumbled, nudging his thumb in their captives' direction.

"The Transssmetalssss?" asked Serpentia.

"No, the other two. Those shiny morons were easy pickings, like protoforms on an assembly line."

"Hey!"

They both turned to see that the cheetah bot had woken up just in time to hear that insult. Cheetor's Transmetal 2 form obviously didn't give him as much of an advantage as he'd thought. How did they all get captured anyway?.

"Rise and shine, everybody," announced Crowbeak. He flicked a switch on a remote control he had, which sent a surge of energon through the Maximals' circuits. They all woke with a painful start.

"Hey, what gives?" cried Rattrap. His and Cheetor's Transmetal forms meant that energon radiation did not affect them. How on Cybertron did the Predacons zap them just now?

"Hm, guess our oh-so-mighty leader was right…" whispered Crowbeak, playfully flicking the switch once again, laughing at the yelps of pain that emitted from his prisoners.

"Great sitch you got us into, Night…" Sandskimmer stated, bitterly.

"Excuse me? Who invited you, anyway?" she spat back.

"Oh, ssshhhut up!" barked Serpentia, "Aren't b**we**/b the enemiessss here?" She chortled at the delicious irony.

The two organics lowered their heads after glancing guiltily at each other. The Pred had a point…

"Well, at leasssst you got two from each party. Go fetch him," she ordered Crowbeak. He stood his ground, scowling.

"That'ssss an order…" she added sternly.

--

The Maximals at Pangaea One were going about their daily business, be it watching the monitors, training for combat, or lazing around until scout duty.

However, something was amiss. A gold and brown camel bot named Nomad, who had half of his beast mode hump sat on each shoulder, and all the limbs located on his back, was searching the base for someone, clearly confused.

"Something the matter, Nomad?" asked Greyback, distracted by the camel's rummaging through a supply closet.

"I cannot locate Sandskimmer anywhere," Nomad replied, ceasing his futile search amongst the wrenches and empty weapons canisters, "he was supposed to accompany me to the Sahel sector, but he's late and won't answer his com-link."

Greyback raised a brow ridge. Sandskimmer was an irresponsible little imp at times, but he was never late for a mission. He scratched his chin, thinking. He then walked over to an empty console and opened a communication channel to Sandskimmer.

"Greyback to Sandskimmer, please respond, you're late for your duties."

There was only quiet static.

"Respond, dammit, that's an order," continued Grey, a little sterner. Still nothing. "Hmm…" he streamed an open channel communication to all the Maximals in the base.

Optimus, now having been formally instated into the Pangaea crew, heard the message over his own com-link:

"This is a message directed to all units…anyone seen Sandskimmer?"

Optimus heard several mutters of unawareness as to the jerboa's location over his radio. He headed towards the command centre where Greyback, the temporary commander in Jagna's absence, was located to offer a hand if needed. This greatly irritated the wolf. But the, very little didn't irritate him.

"You can pretend to be useful by scanning the base for him…" the canine scoffed.

Unappreciative of his attitude, Optimus was about to retort when Rhinox came in, looking just as confused as Nomad did 7 cycles earlier.

"Anybody seen Rattrap? He's got a few of my tools and…what?"

"Rattrap's missing?" asked Optimus.

"Missing? I dunno, he's just not where I left him with Cheetor. Incidentally, where'd b**he**/b go?"

Optimus was beginning to see a pattern. Evidently, so was Greyback. The wolf mech turned to Nomad, and ordered him to have all base units report to them immediately.

20 cycles later, the room was rather crowded. As he looked around, Optimus saw no sign of his two comrade, and they were easily distinguishable. Greyback had a holopad in his hand, and began ticking off names.

"Nomad...("Present"), Spanner…("Right here") Sleek…("Here")…"

He finished the role call with the last two names on the list, to which he got no response.

"Sandskimmer and…Nightshaft?" He grumbled, resuming the scratching of his chin, "And two of yours are missing, Primal?" he inquired. Optimus nodded, starting to get worried.

"Um…Grey?" peeped Accinon, raising her hand slowly, "I think they went out…"

"What?" he snapped back.

"Well, I heard them say something about humans, and…Night said she'd take 'em somewhere, I dunno." She shrugged.

"And why didn't you stop them, 'Non?"

"I can't answer you when you use that tone, Grey…" she said, haughtily defensive. Greyback slapped his head.

"Alright. Streakhorn…" he pointed to a female gazelle in the crowd, "I want the long-range scanners up, now. The rest of you, to your posts."

All units made their way to their assigned duties. Greyback whispered to Optimus for a quick word.

"What are your guys playing at?"

"Excuse me?"

"I thought we had an agreement. You and your lot would follow our rules, and that includes…" the wolf was cut off by an intruding orange hand.

"I resent the implication that my crew would be so irresponsible to walk away like this…" he stated, dryly.

"Are you saying this is the fault of my crew members?"

"I'm **saying** that we can't place blame on anyone until we know **exactly** what happened. Besides, they're not **yours**…" he added, slightly bitterly. He was, after all, just the lieutenant.

Greyback snarled.

"Woah, now, hold up!" someone called from the crowd. It was Spanner, the macaw bot. He pushed his way past his comrades, and ended up next to the bickering bots. "Why y'all trippin', Grey?"

"Were you listening?" Greyback asked, narrowing his optics.

"Never mind that. Listen, man, they're kids! You can't keep a leash on 'em like a dog, dawg. And they're together, ain't that enough?"

"Rattrap would know better…or should know better…" Optimus muttered.

"I mean, come on," Spanner continued, "It's not like they gonna get themselves captured or nuthin', right?"

"Grey!"

The three mechs turned their heads. Streakhorn was galloping towards them, her long, slender gazelle limbs carrying her as fast as they could.

"We just got a transmition from the Predacons. They've got our guys…"

After a brief second of utter shock, Greyback shot a nasty look at Spanner.

"What?"

"Slaggit," Greyback turned his head away, sick with worry and panic, "We should've known it was way too quiet. Streakhorn, contact Base Three, I need to talk to Jag."

"Shouldn't we hear what the Predacon have to say first?"

"Did I say anything about the Predacons? No, I didn't. Get our leader on the communicator, now!"

A few cycles later, Greyback was at another console speaking through a microphone.

"This is Pangaea One calling Base Three. Come in, Base Three."

He was answered by a deep male voice from the other side.

"This is Streamline. What's up Grey? Long time no speak!"

"Not now, blubber head, I need t talk to Jag…"

"Well, that's nice," the other voice replied, clearly insulted, "Jag's not here, you just missed her."

"What? How? She's only been there a few cycles!"

"Yeah, and she needed to go with Sig straight away. She was late, so…"

"When will they be done?" Greyback interrupted, impatiently.

"Got me. Few megacycles, maybe. Look, what's this about?"

Greyback huffed, sighed, and composed himself to answer without reaching through the communicator and shaking Streamline till his head toppled off.

"Four Maximals have been captured by the Predacons. Nightshaft, Sandskimmer, and two of the new guys, a rat and a cat."

"…holy slag…And the Preds?"

"Havn't spoken to 'em yet…" Grey answered, lowering his head. He was dreading talking to the Predacons, dreaded hearing what they'd have in store for his comrades.

Optimus, seeing this distress, stepped in.

"Is there any way at all to get in contact with your commander?" he asked the voice in the microphone.

"Who's this?" came Streamline's muffled and confused voice.

"This is Optimus Primal…I'm new here…Where is she, exactly?"

"About 300m below sea level, why?"

"Can you swim?"

"Duh. I'm a whale." Optimus sighed impatiently. How was he supposed to know that?

"Just get her, you hunk o' blubber," snapped Greyback, out of his slump.

"Yes, of course. Streamline out."

--

"Bahhhh! I ttttthought the Maxxximalsss would've called by now!"

Serpentia was slithering on the floor back and forth, hissing impatiently. Crowbeak and Colossus were leaning idly against the wall, watching the serpent. A large, portable, cylindrical chamber was in the middle of the room, the back of it facing them.

"They…will do…" came the eery voice from within its chamber, referring to their Maximal hostages, "Make…the call…"

--

The Maximals had just received the communication from the Predacons, demanding a rendezvous in a remote sector. Greyback's nerves were at their peak, and the usually calm Optimus was starting to get a bit testy, too.

Optimus was worried about his two crewmates, as was Greyback for his, and they were reaching the point in their disagreement where they would surely hit each other. Or rather, Optimus could slap Greyback into the next chamber with a flick of his index.

Then, a familiar and highly welcomed voice came through the crackling radio, "Greyback? Come in…"

"Jag? Is that you? Thank merciful Primus." The wolf sighed, slumping into a chair and wiping his brow.

"Yeah, Signia and I have just finished setting up the long-range marine communication posts. What's up?"

"We, uh, we got a problem…"

"Yes, I gathered. Streamline was sobbing into the com-link, I couldn't understand a word he was saying."

"Blubber head…" Greyback muttered, turning his head away from the microphone.

"Well?" queried Jagna, growing ever impatient.

After an uncomfortable pause, Greyback answered, "We have a Situation Obses in action, I'm afraid."

"What?!" He jumped a little at the response, as she must have leant further towards the microphone and shouted into it. "Who?" she continued.

"Nightshaft, Sandskimmer," he heard her groan, "Rattrap and Cheetor."

There was another moment of silence. Then they heard her conversing with her companion, Signia. Optimus decided to step in and explain the situation.

"They requested a rendezvous in this quadrant," he stated, typing in the co-ordinates much to Greyback's irritation. Optimus heard him mutter something along the lines of 'his fingers are too big', "I believe they were ambushed…" before he could continue, he was sharply cut off.

"Thank you for your tremendously insightful observation, Primal," the Maximal leader spat through the microphone, "an Obses situation is a hostage situation, thank you very much." How was he supposed to know that? These Maximals all seem to assume he would catch on to every little thing.

"Listen, Jagna, if I know those Preds, they've taken them to their base. Permission to send a scout group to Sector 12…" Greyback stated.

i_Sector 12?_/i Optimus' optics widened. The lava pits…

"Permission granted," the leopard replied, "but do not engage until I get there."

"But it'll take you ages to get there!"

"Find out what they want, but I repeat: do b**not**/b engage. Are we clear?"

"I can handle this…" began an offended Greyback.

"That's an order, lieutenant." she stated firmly, "Jagna out."

The wolf snarled at the now silent com-link. But he shook his head and followed his orders.

"Alright gang, you heard her, I want units from both terrestrial bases on this one. Spanner, you're with me, and call Bounder and Misty. I want them with us."

"Yes, suh!" Spanner flew of towards another communicator in a blur of red feathers.

"You. Primal," Greyback barked at Optimus, "those are your guys out there, too. I think you should come with us."

Optimus was taken aback, but grateful. Despite his rough edges, Greyback obviously gave a damn about the safety of his team. Primal nodded respectfully, letting the lieutenant know that he appreciated the gesture, and would cause no trouble. Grey nodded back.

"Spanner?" the wolf called out.

"They on their way, Grey, they'll meet us there. They were close by on field duty anyway."

"Good. In the meantime, you're aerial recon. As soon as you bet there, scout the perimeter. Remember not to engage, but see if you can spot what the Preds are up to. You're one of our best fliers, and…"

"Fo' sho! You got that right dawg, make way for numbah one! Hell yeah…" he trailed off after noticing the look on Grey's face.

"Don't let it get to your head. I said 'one 'of', now get going."

"Yes, suh!" the macaw replied, taking off through one of the cave's chimneys.

"Alright, Primal, let's head out."

Optimus nodded, and once outside the mountain transformed into flight mode, and convinced a reluctant Greyback to hitch a ride. He did, on one condition: they stayed as close to the ground as possible. "So I can tell where we are," he claimed.

--

"Polly wanna cracker?"

"Shut up."

"Polly wanna craker?"

"Shut up!"

Polly wanna…urk!"

Sandskimmer's persistent taunting of Crowbeak swiftly rewarded him with two magnets sealing his lips.

"Nice…" scoffed Cheetor

"Shd p…" the jerboa muffled.

"Well, they're sure taking their sweet time," muttered Colossus, who had worn a foot-deep trench in the soil after a long period of impatient pacing with his gigantic feet.

"Optimus'll be here," said Cheetor with confidence, "you'll see…"

_iThat's the idea, you impudent little welp/i_, Obertron thought snidely. He didn't doubt that the Maximals would arrive, and he was to 'negotiate' with the Maximal scum…How he despised that aspect of his position. Maximals are for vapourising, not for making pleasantries.

Meanwhile, back at the Predacon base, Rattrap and Nightshaft we being contained in a circular cell with high frequency energy bars surrounding them threateningly.

"Well, ain't this just peachy!" exclaimed Rattrap, after yet another failed attempt at disabling the bars. He nursed his fingers, all of which had been singed slightly, muttering. He turned to the spider monkey, "No way they got all this fancy stuff by salvagin' a blown up sardine can."

"They're good at improvising," she replied, "I should know…"

He was about to ask what she was talking about, then she pulled out what looked like a compact mirror…and it was. He raised a brow teasingly at her, but she didn't see him…or chose not to.

She opened it and, making sure no on-guard Predacons were present, she delicately and with careful precision bent the light of the laser beams with the reflective surface. She aimed the reflected beam at the socket at the top of the bar, quietly exhausting the micron beams and overloading the circuits. The light flickered and died, leaving a gap of harmless air. Nightshaft smugly smiled and place a hand on her hip, admiring her handiwork with pride.

Rattrap gave a little huff. "Only one at a time? Meh…"

Aftre three more bars went offline, they slipped carefully through, being careful not to set off the alarm or frying themselves to a crisp.

"Okay, now what?" asked Rattrap.

"This was," Nightshaft answered confidently.

"How do yeh know?"

"Trust us…"

"Us?" he asked, but she had already made her way without him. He threw up his arms, gave up and followed her into the vents in beast mode. He sincerely hoped his metal wheels would not make too much noise in the wafer thin tin tubes.

--

The three Pangaea One Maximals arrived at the edge of the sector. Greyback leap off Optimus' wing as soon as solid ground was comfortably close enough. Spanner reported that there were six units at the meeting point. Four Predacons, but only two Maximals.

Grey and Optimus snarled.

They met up with the two recruited units from Pangaea Two, Bounder, an agile male hare and a small badger femme named Misty. Obviously, Optimus had never met these two transformers before, but it seemed that team-ups like these were not too frequent, as they and Spanner greeted each other like they hadn't spoken for years.

"Alright people," announced Greyback, "move in."

What followed felt like a sever case of déjà vu when Greyback and Obertron stood opposite one another again, a very distasteful look on both faces.

With a smug little grin, Obertron, not taking his optics off the wolf, waved a long, crooked claw that beckoned forth his prisoners.

As soon as he saw Sandskimmer and Cheetor in energon bonds, Grey let out a fierce snarl, and grabbed the Predacon fuzor by the scruff of the neck and pulled him close, teeth bared. Obertron narrowed an optic and sneered.

"This uncomfortable closeness with Maximals is getting tedious. Release me, blaggard, so that we may have this over and done with."

Grey narrowed his own optics and sharply pushed the monkey-bat away from him.

"Why are you even calling for a trade?" asked Bounder. The shaking of many heads old Optimus that the hare mech had a tendency to butt it, "Aren't we technically at war?"

"Like we need you to remind us…" retorted Misty, quietly.

"Are we not all trying to avoid war?" asked Obertron, a look of fake innocence on his face. The Maximals stared blankly at him. Even his own troops couldn't hold in a snort. "In any case, let us begin…"

"Not until Jagna gets here," Greyback firmly stated.

"How predictable. What a good boy!" Obertron patted the top of Greyback's helmet, and his hand was promptly slapped away with contempt.

All the present Predacons namely Colossus, Webneck and a sabertooth tiger who was hidden mostly in shadow, seized the delicious opportunity to taunt the uptight canine. It began with insults similar to Obertron's, calling him puppy and what-not. Then came the sticks, and the 'fetch's.

Greyback's whole body tensed but he remained still, fists clenched and shoulders up by his cheeks. i_I'm not gonna flip, I'm not gonna flip_/i, he kept telling himself.

His right optic twitched when one of the twigs hit his face.

_iFlipping sequence commencing…./i_

"Down boy," taunted Colossus, "or else…"

The huge black bear had in his massive paws the remote control Crowbeak had earlier. With a smirk he flipped the switch, sending a surge of now all-too familiar pulse of pain through the captive Maximals.

Outraged, the Maximals angrily advanced, drawing their weapons. But their lieutenant held out his arms to stop them, still facing the Predacons, anger and worry blended into each other within his metal facial features.

"Stop it, now," he said loudly, unable to keep his voice steady.

"Oh yeah?" Colossus increased the intensity of the cruel torture device. The yells of pain grew louder.

"No! Stop, please!" the wolf yelled hysterically, his body now shaking.

The four Predacons took a moment to enjoy the look on every single Maximal's face, then turned the shocker on. Colossus chuckled, "I love my job,"

Cheetor graned. What a wallop that always was.

"Like we haven't had enough of b**that**/b today," he heard Sandskimmer complain, justifiably.

Greyback sighed heavily, almost sinking to the ground with relief.

"Now that we have your attention," boasted Obertron, (i_When did you not have my attention? _/i Grey thought bitterly) "let us get down to the matter at hand."

"And that would be?" asked a seething Optimus, unable to stop himself.

"Funny you should ask, Primal. We will trade their freedom…for you."

"Me?" he inquired, confused.

"Him?" echoed the Maximals.

"But what…" Optimus was interrupted by a voice just ahead of him.

"Duh, it's a trap." Sandskimmer pointed out, as if it were obvious…which it was now.

"A trap? Nonsense. A trade…" stated Obertron, matter-of-factly. Optimus considered this carefully. Clearly it b**was**/b a trap, and giving himself up would mean the Predacons would win. But if he didn't, he would be condemning his captured comrades. Speaking of which…

"Where's Rattrap? And Nightshaft?"

"It is simply a matter of the art of war, my friend. How can we be sure you'd comply?"

"And what about you Oby? I believe this has happened once or twice before. Frankly I'm getting sick of it…" sneered Greyback.

"The past is irrelevant at this point," barked Obertron, his usual loud and dramatic voice slipping a bit, "what matters now is now. You leader is not currently present, so it is up to you…lieutenant…" he added with cruel intonation.

All eyes were on Greyback, who lowered his head solemnly.

"I cannot allow my comrades to remain captured," he began, raising his head slowly, "nor can I ask Optimus Primal to sacrifice himself…"

Optimus appreciated Greyback's dilemma, and his nobility. He had severely underestimated him. Though seemingly rash, he followed his Maximal programming to the last string of code. Jagna was wise to have made him her second-in-command.

"You won't have to ask me. I'll do it."

Everyone turned to the other Maximal leader.

"You don't have to do that," affirmed Greyback.

"But I will," Primal responded with a small smile. Greyback opened his mouth to say something else, but he stopped and listened to something. He pressed a button on the side of his helmet, just under an ear. After a few nods and a soft mumble, he looked back at Optimus.

"Thank you, Primal. We won't forget this," He winked, unbeknownst to the Predacons. A little confused, Optimus stepped forward, but he gathered from Grey's gesture that all would be well….

…He hoped.

"Don't do it, Big-Bit. They're Preds! They won't hold up their end of the bargain, you know that!" Cheetor called to his leader, struggling against his bonds.

"Don't underestimate our honour, young one," hissed his captor, Webneck, a thin, Japanese-looking femme bot whose beast mode was a frilled lizard, its scales covering most of her body. She tightened her grip on her captive, making her collar of frills tense up in enjoyment, before releasing him and marching him to the trade-off spot.

Tempted as he was to spin around and rip out her spinal cord, the look Optimus gave Cheetor told him to keep calm and quiet.

The exchange was made. Obertron smiled and bowed, using his wings as a sort of cape.

"Until we meet again…"

"Nightshaft and Rattrap," Greyback growled.

"They will be released as soon as we have reached our base, Obertron replied as the Predacon party turned to leave with Optimus, "Farewell,"

He smirked triumphantly at his comrades, worrying Optimus a little.

"Just squish 'em, mate," Sandskimmer whispered hoarsely as they crossed paths.

After a minute or so of making sure they were gone, Greyback turned and ordered Cheetor and Sandskimmer back to base.

"But…" Sandskimmer began, but he has cut off by a look of daggers.

"We'll deal with you two later…" he spat.

"Hey, wait a minute!" cried Cheetor as he was led away by Misty, "What about Optimus? We can't leave him with the Preds!"

Greyback's mouth tugged at the corner to form a small smirk, "He's a big boy, (pun intended). He'll be fine. Fall back. Misty, Bounder, once these two are at Pangaea One, return to your field posts. Thanks for coming," They nodded and made their way as escorts. "Spanner," Grey continued, "I want a report on this for tomorrow."

"On what?" squawked the flier.

"Just…take your time on it…" the wolf replied suggestively. Spanner tilted his head as the wolf transformed into beast mode and ran off in the opposite direction to the base. He shrugged, transformed as well, and took off.

--

"You sure yeh know where yer goin', Blackie?"

"Even if I didn't, would you know where to go?"

"Uh…"

"Exactly, so shut up."

"I coulda figured it out…" Rattrap mumbled, disgruntled and getting impatient as he and Nightshaft snuck past and through random corridors of the Predacon base. He still had no idea where they were, inside or out.

After a few more cycles of lefts, rights, ups and downs in yet another ventilation system, a gust of steam threw them both out of a horizontal shaft and into a small dimly-lit cave.

Nightshaft pointed to a vertical tunnel with a ladder in it, signalling him to go first while she watched his back. Before he did so, Rattrap had a look around the cave with a sneaky suspicion he had been there before.

"Ugh, what a charming view…" Nightshaft covered her optics with her free hand as she and Rattrap ascended the ladder. He looked down at her and told her, with a smirk, to enjoy it while she could. Scowling, she instructed him to remove the cover at the top once they reached it.

He did so, and still look at her when he removed it asked, "Is this what you meant by watchin' my back? Woah!"

A hand suddenly grabbed him by the back of the neck and hoisted him out of the hole. He yelled his signature yell, limbs flaining.

"easy, ratty,"

"What the…?"

Rattrap stopped, shocked but relieved that it was the maximal leader, Jagna's hand that pulled him out.

"Oh, man. I don't usually say this to cats, but boy, am I glad the see you!" he exclaimed. She smiled at him, put him down and reached down to pull Nightshaft out.

"Jag!" the primate sighed, "Thank the…"

"I'll deal with you later…" Jagna hissed quietly. Nightshaft sunk her head to her chest, "And you," Jagna continued, pointing to the Transmetal rat. i_What did I do?_ /ihe thought.

"Jagna, the Preds have Sandskimmer and Cheetor," said Nightshaft.

"Yes, I know, they're fine. They're on their way to base. Now follow me, Optimus will be here soon…" the leopard replied.

"Optimus?" inquired Rattrap, "What's he doin' here?"

"Exchanging himself for you. No time to talk about it, just follow my lead."

Rattrap took a look at his immediate environment. Rocks that stank of silica, muddy ground, small pools of glowing red hot liquid…

"The lava pits! Are we in Sector 12?"

That's exactly where we are. Now stay low, you two, they'll be arriving shortly…

"Come on, bonehead, attack!"

"I cannot."

"You gotta take a swipe at me…"

"But why? Even as a Predacon…"

"As a Predacon, you'd have no problem doing me in. I've shot you before."

"To save my life."

"Not the first time!"

Blackarachnia slapped her head. This was going nowhere. In order to infiltrate any Predacon society, they would need to undercover as Predacons…both of them. It was not a problem for the widow, because like she's said before: "Even if I'm good, I'm still bad." Silverbolt, on the other hand…

"Ugh, for the love of Primus, I give up!" She threw up her claws, turned on her heels and walked away from him after he refused to hit her yet again.

"But you cannot, beloved! We must infiltrate the Tripredicus Council, and I cannot do it without you."

"Then b**work**/b with me!" yelled the widow, frustrated. She sighed, "We're obviously going to fail, so why bother? Evil will triumph…"

"Never!" cried Silverbolt, puffing out his chest, "I will not give up and neither will you! Come my love, make me a Predacon!'

_Sucker…_she smirked.

"If you think we can pull it off…" she said, holding her hands behind her back and swaying coyly. "Remember, Predacons will stop at nothing to get what they want. Nothing, got that? Now think of something you want…"

"I need not, I'm looking at it…" he smiled in her direction, trying to be charming.

"Focus, Bolt." She turned away from him momentarily to cover up her chuffed smile. "Now, imagine I'm in the way of whatever it is you want."

She had to snap her claws to get him to stop gazing dreamily at her.

"Right," he responded, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Now, get by me." She crouched down low, ready to stop him…if he ever decided to move.

Steadfast and resolute, Silverbolt, prepared to charge at her. Of course he would not, this was only to tease her. And of course, she knew this. And so, to his great surprise, as soon as he edged forward she charged straight for him, ramming him in the stomach, sending him flying backwards. He had forgotten how she could pack a punch.

As he got up massaging his stomach plate, she began to taunt him just as she did in the old days, with things like, "Fight back, Maximal!" and "What, can't take it from a lady? Come on!"

The seriousness finally began to sink in. Silverbolt shook his head, and narrowed his optics, but he did not move. He saw the widow pacing in front of him, making threatening 'come get me' gestures.

Then, above her taunting, he heard another voice. He didn't know where from, but apparently he was the only one who heard it, for his love continued to rant.

i_Can't take it, huh_/i_?_ it said, i_Figures, you never could_. /i

The bird dog darted his head from side to side, wondering who was saying that. It came from all sides it seemed, until it's resonance focussed on one point. Temporarily blinded, he charged forward, hit something, bringing himself and it to the ground. He shook his head, and his optics came into focus. He was lying on top of Blackarachnia, who had an alarmed look on her face. But it quickly disappeared.

"Finally, we're getting somewhere! Now get off me, you're a lot heavier than you look…"

Silverbolt, still a little dazed, complied. Then he, too, congratulated himself.

"I must say, my love, your method was very effective," he said, referring to the speakers she must have placed around the room to get him worked up.

She tilted her head, and said, "Hey, all it takes is a little taunting, bone head." She thought he must be even softer than she originally anticipated if that was all it took to wind him up. She thought nothing of it, and would have to toughen him up. "But if I ever catch you in that position with any other bot, you're on trouble," she added winking. He smiled.

"Of course not. You are the only one I would ever…"

"Don't finish that…" she said, holding up a claw to his lips, "Now come on, I think that's enough for one day…"

He nodded, and with their arms interlocked in each other's hips they left the room. Silverbolt pricked his ears when he heard something familiar…

i_Honour, huh? We'll soon see to that…_/i

He waved I aside, thinking She must have left it on.

Optimus tensely walked with the Predacons in beast mode. They came in sight of the familiar lava pits where the Darksyde used to be situated. Optimus would always remember the battles and rescue missions that took place in this sector, and would do so again now.

Greyback's wink earlier suggested that he was up to something. He could not fathom what at the moment, but he hoped that whatever it was, it would not end with anyone getting seriously damaged.

"We're not seriously considering releasing the other two?" Webneck asked obertrob, who was in beast mode as well, flying low to the ground to keep an eye on Primal. Optimus could hear them, because his Optimal body could heighten a required sense when needed, and they did not seem aware of that.

"Of course not, by thunder," replied Obertron, swooping low to talk in the lizard's ear, "We will need him and at least one other Transmetal, and I believe I am not the only one who was glad to be rid of that cat."

"Indeed, what a mouth…" hissed the reptile.

i_So_/i…thought Optimus…i_they would not keep their promise after all. Fine then_/i. But he would uphold his Maximal honour…at least until he could think of a way to get free. He could easily 'squish them' as Sandskimmer so delicately put it, but that would provoke even more hostility from the Predacons as a whole, and they way they captured him before, he was in no mood to be put up against those odds. Anyone who could capture an almost Autobot-sized transformer was a force to be reckoned with. But b**how**/b did they do it?

He was not sure what happened next. One minute, he was walking across the hot surface of the volcanically active ground, the next there were yells and war cries all around him. The first person he spotted was Rattrap, zooming towards him in beast mode. How relieved Optimus was to see that he escaped, but woprried now that he was alone out in the open.

But of course he wasn't alone. Nightshaft was close to his rear and…Jagna as well? How did she get there and when?

An even bigger surprise was when Greyback jumped over Primal, transformed in mid air and started swiping at the beast forms of the Predacons.

"A little help would be nice, Boss Monkey!"

Optimus transformed and joined in the battle, which lasted a few cycles before he heard Jagna call, "Fall back!"

The autoguns of the Predacon base perimeter followed them as they ran, ricocheting off their metal bodies like peas from a pea shooter.

Optimal Optimus changed to jet mode, instructed everyone to climb on, and shot off at high speed. Poor Greyback clung on to Jagna for dear life as the wind shot past their heads like the bullets they were running from.

At last, the noise dispersed, and Optimus landed on a flat area of rock on a mountainside.

Jagna had to pull Greyback off Primal's wing, as he was unconvinced they had stopped moving.

All five Maximals stood, panting from their effort. Greyback had a few words with Jagna, and they quietly mumbled, occasionally looking over at the other three. Optimus could not hear them, as most of his energy and focus had gone into flying.

Jagna stood tall, assembled her team, and said, "What happened here today…was a disgrace," Nightshaft lowered her head, "I thought I had made it perfectly clear to beveryone/b that no one was to leave the base unaccompanied…" Rattrap was about to interrupt, "…without notifying anyone else!" she barked.

"We're sorry Jag…" the spider monkey began.

"Sorry? That's not enough, Night. Imagine if we weren't able to get you back, then what? Especially the new bots! They have no idea of what Khan is capable of…" her voice was starting to break, much like Greyback's at the trade point. She breathed in deeply, and Greyback put a hand on her shoulder. She nodded, and continued, "Anything like this again and…" she held back a choke, "…and we'll have some serious problems. We can't have another close call like that again. They're too smart for that…' she said seriously, in reference to the Predacons.

"Jagna," Optimus stepped forward and caught her gaze, "I'd like to apologise on behalf of Cheetor and Rattrap…" he also caught the rat's gaze, shooting him a look that obviously meant a long talk later for the rat and the cat. Rattrap shook his head, dreading that moment.

"You have nothing to apologise for, Optimus…" she replied, giving him a smile, "I appreciate your gesture. Back to base you three," she added to Greyback, Nightshaft and Rattrap. She beckoned Optimus a little further away as Greyback led the wayward bots back home.

"These Predacons weren't after just anyone. For some reason they want you. And if I know my dear old friend, it's not just for your body…" she considered him carefully, gazing deeply into his optics, "…Please…" she implored, "…keep yourself and your friends safe. I'm doing all I can, but I need to be in three places at once. Earth has changed, Primal."

"I thought you didn't think me trustworthy," he commented, noting the fact she would not let her own name slip easily when they first met, "why would you tell me this now?"

She gave him an odd look, and replied, "Because it's something you need to know. But I can't elaborate. It's not that I don't think you trustworthy, but I have my reasons for being cautious…"

"Of course. And thank you," he added, smiling. She returned that smile, to his surprise, "I hope we can build up that trust and work together well."

She nodded. "Me too. We'd better return to base,"

He agreed, and offered her a lift. But she declined, "Flying's OK, but having your feet firmly on the ground ensures less of a splat if you malfunction and fall." She grinned. They both chuckled, and slowly followed the others in their alt modes.

--

Somewhere above a metallic planet, three bots sat in a dark room, the only light emanating from the light in the hallway, creeping into the room in a solid line of white.

The faces of the occupants could only just be seen by each other. One spoke.

"Is our operative still active?"

"Affirmative. We heard word from them a megacycle ago. The Maximal beast bots intend to infiltrate our ranks." replied a second bot, drumming his fingers together at his news.

"They will not succeed," said the third, "so long as the operative remains on course…" he added sternly.

"I supervised the field test myself," spat back the second, "this operative will b**not**/b deviate…"

"This time…" interrupted the first, "We learn from our mistakes, though few. Our first Earth unit was overcome and defeated by his incompetence, and the second, well…we were fools to think we could overwrite his heritage."

"Indeed," concurred the second bot, almost unwillingly, "such mistakes cannot be repeated. We will rise again in the eyes of the Maximal High Council."

"Pah! As if they are capable of stopping us? Ultra Magnus is old and out-dated. His methods are ineffective. Even if he does find us…" the third bot began, before being interrupted by the first.

"Even if he finds us, it would be a problem. Ultra Magnus may be weaker than he once was, but there is a reason he is the leading member of the Council. Be cautious…" he warned the ignorant third, who lowered his head.

"And Earth? What is the word from there?" inquired bot number two. The first smiled eerily.

"They are…clueless…"

All three bots began to laugh menacingly, echoing through the outside corridor, bringing all transformers present to a halt.

The space station they inhabited continued its slow orbit around one of Cybertron's moons, casting a shadow over the planet, foreshadowing its ultimate demise.


	5. Stalemate

Beast Wars REBIRTH

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 5: **Stalemate

"You're gonna pay for this, rat man…"

"Yeah? We'll just see about that"

The scarlet red macaw stared at the Transmetal rat through his narrow visor. He was scanning him closely, and Rattrap was doing the same. The rat had his smug face on, mocking the parrot.

"You have been Flushed!" he yelled, triumphantly smacking his cards down on the table. He chuckled and rubbed his hands together, "Maybe next time yeh'll think twice about playing against the pro, junior."

He smiled broadly at Spanner's defeated disposition. The shiny metal rodent reached for his winnings with his arms outstretched and his fingers wiggling excitedly.

"Hold up, there, RT…" Spanner interrupted. Rattrap paused, "Before you take all your dough, tell me…what the heck should ah do with these two pairs?"

Rattrap looked at said pairs. His jaw dropped. He scanned them again. Nah, it can't be…

"In yo face, bro! Gimme that stuff!" The macaw threw his four aces onto the table and dragged the winnings from under Rattrap's nose. The rat wailed with despair, banging his head and fists on the table.

"Maybe **you** should think twice from now on, dawg…" boasted Spanner, counting his booty. It was not much, but it was the principle that counted. It had been stellar cycles since anyone had beaten Rattrap at poker.

"How the slag did you do that, yeh broken record?" queried Rattrap, trying to get over himself.

"Ah called yo bluff, foo. I saw you getting' all 'woah man, what a hand' on me. I called it…and you bought mine. It's a bot eat bot world out there, man, live with it. Go with the flow!" He got up, and did a sort of hip-hop jig to boast his victory, and moon walked out of the room, leaving Rattrap to wallow in a massive puddle of self-pity.

"'Sides…" the macaw amusedly called to the rat, "I'd a' won anyhow…"

As he left, he stroked the gap in his cuff with glee, revealing four more cards.

"Sucka…"

--

Despite some turbulence, Optimus' crew had integrated into the Pangaea lot quite well. The first few days of their stay in their base had been rocky and rather unpleasant, mostly due to the war and the incident with the Predacons and a certain four Maximals. But things were finally starting to settle down.

For instance, Rhinox invited Jagna and Skylark to their ship, The Hercules. Needless to say, they were awestruck. Most of the bots currently on Earth didn't even know that sort of technology existed, they had been living on salvaged parts for so long. Skylark was beside herself. Jagna had not seen her so excited since they found the first piece of a CR chamber, and she thought of a way to make it work without the use of unavailable energon. Rhinox was rather impressed by this, but Skylark was not at liberty to say exactly what she did, at least with her commander so close by.

"Pft, that was easy. Believe it or not, it was finding the parts big or un-singed enough to be compatible with what I came up with or salvaged from…uh…" Jagna was giving her a very fractious look, which she read instantly as, 'shut up now'.

"Don't worry…" Skylark continued to Rhinox, "I'll be able to tell you in time. She gets over the whole suspicion thing pretty quickly, she's a softie, really…"

"I can still hear you…" the leopard commented. Skylark and Rhinox chortled and continued looking at Hercules' specs.

Jagna, meanwhile, was looking up publicly viewable files on this crew's information on Cybertron. Her optics narrowed as she examined the frequency readings of their transwarp hole detector and stabiliser.

"Hello? This thing on? Helloooooo!"

The cat bot jumped and extended her claws, growling, searching for the source of the unknown voice that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It had a tinny quality to it, which meant it wasn't in the room with them…

"Woah…" Rhinox quickly made his way towards where Jagna was standing, who was still crouched low and tense. "Easy, kitten," he said softly to calm her down, "It's a communication from Cybertron."

"Oh…" she replied dryly, unenthused, straightening up and retracting her claws.

"From Cybertron?" Skylark asked in awe. Jagna scowled, but it went unnoticed.

"This is Rhinox, technician and third chair for the Warpship Hercules. That you, Jumpstart?"

There was a crackle, the same strange one from their first landing here, then, "Rhinox! 'Bout time!"

Rhinox was glad to hear a familiar voice from Cybertron once again, "Sorry we're late for our report, but it's been a weird few days…"

"Late? What are you on, bot? You're check-in is technically early, I'm just bored…"

"Gee, I'm touched," the rhino joked, "Wait, we're early?"

"Oh, yeah, way early. Buuut, since you're here, fire away, rhino man."

Rhinox shook his head, and explained what had happened to them. He explained that when they landed, they could not detect any stasis pods. Then he described with vivid detail their first encounter with the bots on this planet: the Predacons. He continued with their first Maximal encounter, their visit to Pangaea One, and at this point, Jagna began to hiss like a kettle. For what reason, Rhinox could not fathom, but when he started to explain how the Maximals disclosed themselves within the mountain, she pounced forward and slammed her fist on the console.

"What?" cried a surprised and irritated Rhinox.

"What? What?! I do not want you revealing the whereabouts of our base to anyone!"

"This guy's on Cybertron, what can he do?"

"Um, hello, Rhinox? Who the heck is that?" asked Jumpstart over the communicator, clearly startled by this interruption.

"This is Jagna, leader of the Maximals on this planet," Rhinox replied, leaning his head on his hand and placing his elbow on the console, "Say hello, Jumpstart…"

"Uhh…hello…" the bot began, somehow afraid that whoever had made the racket would come through the radio and throttle him.

"Hi…" Jagna replied, reluctantly.

"…base?" queried Jumpstart.

"Oh, no you…"

"Ahem!" interjected Rhinox. He gave Jagna a stern look, saying, "this is our ship, I will handle it if you don't mind…" She huffed, caught Skylark's warning gaze and walked away to stare at a rather fancy-looking CR Chamber.

"Bottom line is, Jumpstart, is that the pods on this planet were obviously activated a while ago…"

"Obviously…" replied the bot, nervously.

"…and it might be a little trickier getting them all home, seeing as nearly half of them are now Predacons. Don't ask me how, but we intend to find out," He shot Jagna a suggestive look, to which she raised an ignorant brow, "We'll check in again in about two weeks, as planned, sport," the rhino continued, "Rhinox out."

"Later, big guy!"

The communicator clicked, emitted that odd static again, and went silent.

Rhinox turned to Jagna, rather annoyed. "Next time, would you mind not butting in? This is an important Cybertronian matter…"

"So important they sent you lot to do it?" the cat replied, nastily. Skylark's optics widened. This would not end well. Rhinox sighed deeply, trying not to get wound up.

"Look," he continued, calmly and slowly, "our mission was to return to Earth to find all the lost stasis pods, which we did…kind of…and bring them back home, to Cybertron…"

"Well, perhaps we don't want to get crated back to Cybertron!"

At that, the leopard stormed out of the Hercules' control centre, snarling at the high tech sliding doors that delayed her exit, and walked away as quickly as possible once she was out.

"What's with her?" Rhinox inquired, watching the leopard speed off in beast mode on the monitor.

"Don't ask…please…" Skylark responded.

He tried…but he had to.

"Why does everyone here get so charged up when they hear the word Cybertron?"

He saw her bite her lip, milling through how she was going to answer, if at all.

"Well, that's kinda tricky…" she began hesitantly.

"Yes?"

_Okay, so he won't budge,_ she thought, giving up. Orders or whatever, these Maximals were on their side.

"Not everyone here knows what Cybertron is…"

"How is that possible?" asked an astounded Rhinox, "Cybertron is the home of all Maximals, it's etched into every transformer's core hard drive!"

"Something that can easily be removed," she continued, very uncomfortably.

"So who does know it exists? Apart from you and Jagna…"

"A fair few, it's kinda like learning where you come from in some ways. It's the young bots who are a little less aware of their origins."

"What about you? You obviously have a knack for technology, which must have stemmed from somewhere. What's your opinion on Cybertron, Skylark?"

She huffed a little, and pursed her lips.

"I think if they gave a molten slag crap about us, they would have come sooner. And you did a fine job, leaving us all here in the first place, didn't you?"

Rhinox wheeled his seat a way back from her. For some reason, there was a lot of bitterness towards their home planet amongst these Maximals.

"Can we get back to this?" she asked, attempting to deviate from the subject.

"Sure…"

--

"Well? What did you discover?"

"That Maximals are stupid…"

"Watch that resonator of yours! I command you to tell me…"

"Fine, fine. Optimus' crew clearly have no idea about the time delay. They think they're two weeks behind schedule with their reports, and they left three days ago."

"And what of the two beast bots left on Cybertron?"

"How should I know? That's not my…"

The bot cringed when the other banged his fist on the table, causing the two on either side of him to jump in their seats.

"Calmness, please, we are not barbarians," said the one on the angry bot's left, "This young man is right, he has done his duty. Till next week, my boy…Now begone!"

The young bot yelped and trotted out of the dark room through the one door that led to a well-lit hallway.

The still seething bot in the middle muttered, "Why do we rely on such incompetence?"

The bot to his right replied, "Because they are on the same incompetence level as the Maximals, of course. How else would he be able to hack into their communications without their even knowing there was one?"

"Good point. And Ultra Magnus?" the middle one replied.

"Still uncertain. He has certainly become a lot quieter in his old age. As for the beast Maximals, Silverbolt and Blackarachnia, they continue to pass themselves off as Maximals."

The one on the right scoffed and snorted, "Do they realise that they are widely known as the only beast bots left on the planet, and every transformer knows they are Maximals?!"

"Indeed, they seem oblivious. The security Maximal hasn't a clue, but the femme is cleverer than she appears. She once served under, defected and defeated the second Megatron. She might use her Predacon influence to pull it off."

"Little fool! Our mole in the Council has been keeping an eye on them, and thus far, they are failing miserably," the middle bot scorned.

"All that aside, we must allow them to infiltrate our ranks…"

The bot in the middle and on the right stared at him. He shrugged.

"We have so many agents, it's only fair," he began with a sly grin, "besides, it might prove useful to have units with such intimate knowledge of Earth…and the Vok…"

They all shuddered.

"Then it shall be," stated the middle transformer, "For the glory of the Predacon cause!" He held up his right hand and the other two copied. All three slammed a large button in the centre of the table, activating a red light that illuminated all their faces.

"Tripredicus Council meeting adjourned…"

--

Back on Earth, just outside Pangaea One, Greyback and Accinon were adjusting the frequency modulators of the base's shields…much to each other's dismay.

"Dontcha think it's kind of weird?" Accinon asked, bored by the lack of conversation, despite her present company, "I mean, if we're at war now, the Preds would be attacking us left right and centre, right?"

BOOM!

The pair was sent flying onto their back when a photon charge hit right at their feet. Greyback got up and scowled at the cat.

"What?" she asked, defensively.

"Yoohoo! Maxies!" cooed a voice from above them. The pair directed their gaze upwards and saw a green pterodactyl femme smirking down at them, "Mind if we come and play?"

"We?" Grey asked, soon to regret asking, "Aw, crud…"

He dashed towards Accinon, who was still looking up at the flying dinosaur, grabbed her around the waist and flew with her out of the way of another shot.

"Agh! Do you mind?" she scoffed.

"Your welcome!"

"Now come on, what's the point of shooting you if you won't stay still?" yelled a mocking voice from above. That voice was different to the last one they heard. They heard the grinding gears of someone transforming into beast mode, and ducked when a giant bald eagle came swooping down to snatch one of them. The massive bird reared his head, and yelled, "Khronus, Terrorise!"

His golden feathered chest heaved with laughter as he fired his double laser canons at the groundling Maximals.

_iUgh, what a perfect start to the day…/i_

"Show off…" muttered his flying counterpart.

"Don't worry, Pteradonna, I'll leave you the burnt bits!" The pterodactyl scowled, then swept in closer to their quarry, firing her shoulder blasters.

"Shouldn't we be getting back to base?!" Accinon called over several gunshots, including her own and Greyback's.

"No, we need to lead them away from the entrance. We can't risk them finding our base!" Greyback replied as loudly. He dodged another shot from Pteradonna and aimed back at her. "I'm getting sick of these shootouts," he muttered, disgruntled, "come on." He beckoned his feline companion away from the mountainside.

Up in the air, the Predacons watched in bemusement as the Maximals began to flee.

"They must be headed back to their base," commented Khronus as he began to follow them.

"You idiot! They're obviously trying to lead us away from their base!" Pteradonna snapped at him, cutting across his flight path and hovering in front of him.

"Oh, please, they can't be that smart…" he sneered, attempting to veer past her.

"Please tell me byou/b can't be that bstupid/b!"

This little distraction allowed the Maximals to head further away, avoiding the forest.

"Shouldn't we be headed for cover?" Accinon asked.

"That's what they'll be expecting…" Greyback answered, panting as they ran faster, "It'll throw them off for a little while…"

"That is he most idiotic, bone-headed plan I've…"

"Watch that dry tongue of yours, kid, you might just lose it!"

Minutes later, the two flyers had caught up and were firing at the Maximals. Accinon constantly asked for a reminder as to why they were running across open savannah where they were easy targets.

"Because we won't be for long…" He pointed his index to their left, to an area that was a lot greener than where they were. The density of acacia trees was suddenly greater, but only just noticeable…from the air, for the tops of the trees had a similar colour to the ground. Accinon smiled, and followed his lead.

"Good plan!" Greyback shook his head. Despite how long he'd known her, he would never get used to the shifting sides of her personality. One minute you were Primus, the next a garbage disposal unit.

They made a sharp turn, throwing their predators off slightly, and took cover under the closed savannah. The Predacons were high up, and so were very confused when the Maximals suddenly disappeared from view.

"What the…?"

Greyback and Accinon were hiding in the shade of a large acacia. "On my mark. Ready?" Greyback instructed, pulling out his weapon, "One…two…"

"THREE!" yelled a voice that was neither his nor Accinon's.

There were several large bangs from behind them. They covered their heads and waited for the firing to cease.

Meanwhile, up in the air, Khronus and Pteradonna were turning their heads, wondering where those strange sounds were coming from. The 'dactyl bot sighed as she spotted the missiles. She tapped the eagle on the shoulder.

"What? AGH!"

The two were hit by a few of the photon blasts and descended to the west, followed by two threads of black smoke.

Greyback finally lifted his head and saw the two Predacons going down. With his weapon still in his hand, he turned and snarled at…

"Wildcat? What the slag…?"

A cougar with a smug look on his face blew the barrel of his gun and placed it back in his subspace. He winked at Greyback, who withdrew his own weapon, and then focused his attention on Accinon, who was scowling at him from the ground.

"How many times do I have to save your aft, sis?"

"Gee, I dunno, bro, how many times to I have keep you **off** my aft? We had it covered, y'know, we didn't actually need you help…"

"Oh yeah, the running away part really convinced me…" Wildcat sneered back.

Greyback sighed. "There's a reason you two are stationed at different bases…"

Both felines glared at the wolf mech. Reflecting on past experiences, Greyback kept his mouth shut, ignoring the sibling arguments as best he could.

"What are you doing out here, anyway? On your **own**?"

"Well, sibling, I was on my way for the changeover…"

"That was today? Oh man!" Greyback slapped and reared his head in annoyance, "That explains a lot…"

"Fair enough, brother mine. But where's your buddy?" Accinon enquired, "You're the good child, you should know you have to have at least one…"

"Can it, sis, Souris is behind me…"

"That's not how you pronounce it, dipstick," his sister scorned.

"Sour-ee, whatever. She's right behind me. You know how she gets when there's a battle going on. Speaking of which…"

He turned his head, lifted his fingers to his mouth and whistled. After a few seconds of tentative silence, a small rodent crawled out of a bush, its big black eyes wide with fear. "It's OK, gal, you can come out," Wildcat cooed gently. The brown mouse nodded and came further out. She smiled lightly at the sight of Accinon and Greyback, but said nothing.

"Are we swapping with you guys?" Wildcat asked Greyback.

"Not me, but we were just on shield duty. You know the drill is to meet at P One," he scoffed, narrowing his optics. The cat shrugged. Shaking his head, Greyback added, "You two know well that it's in everyone's best interest to be as far away from each other as possible…"

"No objections here," said Accinon.

"Ditto," concurred Wildcat. The two felines turned from each other and crossed their arms, holding their heads up high.

"Anyway," Greyback continued, "I think what we're going to have to do is take a detour to Pangaea Two. We'll take the long way, in case we bump into any more Predacons."

"But we just hauled our afts all the way from P'Two!" Wildcat complained, referring to himself and Souris.

"That's an order." Greyback affirmed.

Wildcat and Accinon scowled together at the pushy wolf. The first sibling agreement he had witnessed, Greyback observed.

The lieutenant sighed, and beckoned his fellow Maximals to transform into beast mode and follow him.

--

Back at Pangaea One, the Maximals were preparing for the changeover. Sandskimmer explained to Optimus and his crew that every seven or so decacycles, units from Pangaeas One and Two change stations for two reasons. One: it maintained diversity amongst the crew, as each had different skills and specialties. And two: staying at one base too long was boring.

"Don't I just know it," commented Rattrap. At least the Maximals had two bases.

A few megacycles later, a stampede of footsteps came down the corridor from the main entrance to the mountain layer. A large shadow came around the corner…

"SHELLY!!"

Nightshaft was gone in a flash, running towards what looked like a walking green boulder. It was in fact a giant tortoise, who transformed when he spotted her headed in his direction. Not a second after he transformed and straightened up to greet her was he on his back after a tackle-hug from the spider monkey. The two bots laughed at themselves, and they were joined by every other bot in the room.

The cavern was filled with gleeful pleasantries as friends were reunited after Primus knows how long. It was a very warm feeling, and when so many smiles were exchanged everyone's spirits were lifted, making them forget about the war, even the new Maximals.

After friends said their hellos, introductions to Optimus' crew were quickly made. The units who had transferred from Pangaea Two were; Shellshock, the giant tortoise who now sported Nightshaft and a necklace (Optimus was informed that those two were the closest of friends, and had been apart for quite a while), a dove femme by the name of Lightwing, and another bird, Moonhawk. She seemed closely-knit with Jagna, who smiled widely at her arrival.

The units who would change places with the newcomers were Vixen, Streakhorn, Sleek, Sandskimmer and Accinon.

"That seems a bit of an unfair trade, doesn't it?" Optimus asked Jagna quietly.

"I'm sorry?" the Maximal leader replied, tilting her ears.

"Well, you've got three coming and five leaving. Doesn't that leave one of your bases undermanned?"

Jagna opened and closed her mouth, mulling through his logic. "Three? Hang on…" she instructed him. He waited patiently as she counted the heads of the Pangaea Two exchangees. Her face relaxed when she finished. "Two of the Twos are late…" she stated, matter-of-factly. Optimus nodded, satisfied. But then Jagna's facial expression reverted back to confusion. She left Optimus to get to a higher level to scan every unit in the base.

"It's good to see you all again," she addressed the new arrivals with a small smile, once she had everyone's attention, "has, uh…has anyone seen Greyback and Accinon?"

Every head shook, looking at one another.

"Weren't they fixing the shields?" someone asked.

"Yeah, but they'd have been back by now…" someone else replied. Jagna's ears flattened, annoyed.

"Right then. Vixen, Sleek, Sandskimmer, your swapping buddies are here, so you three can proceed to Pangaea Two. Streakhorn, you'll have to wait for Souris. As for Wildcat and 'Non…" She narrowed her optics, "…Someone see if they can be contacted. And Grey. This lack of communication is getting ridiculous…"

She descended her 'podium' muttering under her breath, obviously slandering her second-in-command.

"Any luck, Sky?" the leopard asked her technician.

"Nearly…got it!" Skylark hooted triumphantly, and leaned closer to the microphone, "Skylark to Greyback. Come in, Grey."

Jagna held her breath, pessimistically expecting another glitch in communications, but to her pleasant surprise, they got a response.

"This is Greyback."

"Ooh, goodie! Okay, Grey. The P Two units have just arrived…well, most of them…we were wondering where you and 'Non got to…Have you got yourself into trouble again?" Skylark teased.

"Well, actually," Greyback protested, "we were ambushed by Khronus and Pteradonna." Skylark and Jagna both gasped, widening their optics. Hearing, this, Greyback continued assuredly, "We're fine. Wildcat showed up and we chased them off. Souris is here too. We're taking the scenic route to Pangaea Two, in case the Preds follow us."

"Good call, Greyback," Jagna commented, leaning in closer so he could hear him. On the other end of the line, Greyback smiled proudly, clearly chuffed, "continue and keep us posted. We'll have to delay the exchange till later. Careful out there, you lot."

"As always, commander," he replied, saluting, "No Preds we can't handle."

"I wasn't talking about the Predacons…" Jagna replied, lowering her voice. She caught Skylark's eye and they exchanged a knowing look, feeling sorry for Greyback and Souris, the bots who had to endure the siblings for their entire journey.

"Thanks for reminding me…" Greyback replied darkly, "We'll report in two megacycles. Greyback out."

"I'm feeling pretty sorry for Souris right now…" Skylark commented. Jagna nodded, cringing at the thought of the siblings and their squabbling, Greyback's low tolerance level, and the poor timid mouse in the middle.

--

"Ouch! Watch where you poke that thing!"

"Well, if you'd stop squirming, maybe I could get a clear shot."

"OW!"

Khronus and Pteradonna had taken refuge in a niche in a cliff face that loomed over the savannah where they attacked the straying Maximals. Khronus refused to remain still while the pterodactyl femme attempted to inject fluid energy into him to fix the hole blown out by one of the pesky do-gooders. This resulted in a new hole in his thigh.

"You see what I mean? I'm going to need a vice now."

"Just leave it, you pencil beaked parasite! I've suffered worse…"

"…at my hand if you're not careful, you ignoramus!"

Whosever idea it was to pair this couple up because they were both flyers…had a screw or two loose.

As she attempted to seal the new whole in the armour of the now writhing bald eagle, Pteradonna's internal computer notified her of Maximal activity.

"Identify exact location," she instructed, purposefully ignoring Khronus' squawks of agony as she 'accidentally' made another hole with the syringe.i Serves you right/i…she thought.

"Quadrant D-9-7-7-4, headed east."

"The plains…" the 'dactyl bot turned to Khronus, who was clutching his leg, "That's a long way from here…they'll be sitting ducks!"

"Uh, news flash for ya Donna…they could be headed for the limestone cliffs. Plenty of hiding places, and plenty of ammo…" He raised a brow suggestively.

"Hey, that only happened once!" Pteradonna answered defensively, "And they were very big rocks…"

"Uh-huh. Let's not forget the forest they gotta go through to get wherever they're going. Now let's go, before I have so many holes I'll be whistling in the air."

"Be less distracting than the smell, I should think…"

"Why you…SQUAWK!"

A slap on his damaged thigh with her scaly wing signalled Pteradonna's departure when she transformed into beast mode. Khronus shook his head and followed suit, his golden wings outstretched and beady orange eyes ablaze.

--

Souris timidly observed Greyback snarl with his hands over his head as the two of them walked in front of the bickering siblings. She gingerly patted his leg in her beast form. He submissively acknowledged her sympathetic gesture, but she deserved it as much as he did…she lived with the other one.

After the seventh, "Did not", "Did too", Greyback's flipping sequenced commenced.

"Will you two CAN IT!"

They all stopped dead in their tracks. Souris shook her head, and Accinon and Wildcat had their infamous, "What did we do?" faces on. Greyback took a deep breath and attempted to calm down. However when he spoke, his voice suggested anything but calm.

"I have had it up to here with you two," he indicated with his hand, which was shaking slightly. He changed his tone to a hoarse whisper, "This has gone on…too…long…and I swear, if anything else goes wrong today, Primus help you both, I'll…"

"ARRÊTE!" shouted a surprisingly loud voice. Greayback, Accinon and Wildcat spun round. Souris had transformed, and was sniffing the air, elevated on her toes, displaying her rodent mannerisms as her nose worked like mad.

Still a little stunned by the volume that came out of the usually quiet mouse, asked, "What, Souris? What is it?"

She did not answer immediately, but she suddenly spotted what she was looking for: in the air behind and above her three comrades. She pointed and shook her hand frantically, followed by the rest of her body. She strongly resembled a dead leaf being blown off its branch in a gale.

"Touts le mondes! Vite! Vite! Um, uh…DANGER!" She struggled to find the appropriate word to get them to understand that she was trying to say: that Khronus and Pteradonna were closing in on the group, and fast.

She hid behind Greyback, clinging onto his arm when he finally turned around.

"Aw, slaggit, you bgotta/b be kidding me!"

In the air, Donna scowled at her partner.

"Way to go, airhead, they spotted us!" she sneered, pecking him in the side of the head with her large beak.

"Ow! Oh, come on, how is that my fault?" he protested, disrupting her flight pattern by slamming his wing on her.

"Agh! Ugh, forget this. Let's get those Maximals!"

To that, his beak somehow formed into a smile. "Ok. I bagsy the wolf!" And he swooped down. Donna barely had time to stutter that cats give her gas before she followed suit.

"Well, ain't this just peachy?" Greyback hollered sarcastically after he pulled himself and Souris behind an enormous tree trunk for cover. He instructed her to hide within the gaps between each root with gestures rather than words she might not understand. They first found Souris in Galoo Sector, a region of the continent that would eventually become France, and therefore her default language, for some bizarre reason, was set to French.

"Stay there," he instructed her. He withdrew his weapon and came out from his hiding place, aiming his gun at the sky where he last saw the Predacons.

"…Where'd they go?"

"Peekaboo!"

BLAM.

Greyback was thrown off his feet and slammed into a tree behind him, his body tangling in the gaps of the roots. He was in stasis lock.

"Scrap," the siblings said together.

"Okay, they're using the canopy for cover, we'll use the shrub," instructed Wildcat. He was about to head for a thick bush to his left, but his sister grabbed his hind leg with two paws, and his chin hit the floor.

"Ya don't think that's what they think we're thinking of doing? They'll blast you like Grey as soon as you enter a clearing!"

"The point is to not end up in a clearing! We're in a very dense forest and…"

"And you don't think they haven't noticed that?!"

The pair's squabbles could be heard by the Predacons and their comrade.

"Mon dieu…" Souris muttered as she dropped her head into her hand. What she heard next made her shake her head even more.

Above, the Predacons, too were arguing about how to take the Maximals out.

"We should just swoop down there and grab 'em!" Khronus argued.

"No, they'l just cower for cover. Why don't we just burn the place and let 'em run?"

"Uh, yeah, and where are they going to run to?" Donna remained silent, "…More cover! Whatever, we're doing it my way." Khronus dived, withdrawing his weapon, scanning for hidden Maximals.

"Nu-UH!" Donna interjected angrily. She pulled out her flamethrower and followed her partner, burning the vegetation as she swooped.

On either side of her, the mouse femme heard quarrelling, and gunfire. The two things she could not handle. And would not put up with.

Very tentatively and squeamishly, she ducked between shots that Khronus was dealing, and dove under the stream of flames Donna was spilling out of her weapon. Souris arrived next to Accinon and Wildcat, who were yelling at each other and firing simultaneously. She was breathing very fast, clutching her chest. The poor thing was terrified, but infuriated by the level of incompetence the siblings were demonstrating in their current situation.

The felines were abruptly silenced by a slap on a hand by a very sharp little hand.

"Can this wait, Souris? We're kind of…" Before he could say, "busy", she angrily whispered,

"Non! Arête, you two! Zees cannot go on. Eef you would be so kind, zees is vhat you are going to do…"

Not far away, Greyback was stirring. He rubbed his head, and then noticed a large black hole in his chest where he had been hit by that wayward missile. What fun. What was more, the forest around him was on fire.

"What the slag…?"

It was spreading fast, so his first reaction was to pull out a sort of fire extinguisher. While he tamed he flames climbing the lianas, he looked around to see if he could spot his comrades.

He needn't have worried, for when he spotted Souris, she was looking less petrified than before he was knocked out. He gestured mutely to her to inform him of what was going on. She only smiled, winked and pointed at the cats to their right.

Greyback looked, and his jaw dropped. Why were they out in the open? Bickering, wouldn't you know it. The wolf slapped his face hard with his hand and dragged it down towards the ground. Souris placed a reassuring hand on his arm, and retained her positive composure.

"I think we should take the featherless wonder out first…" Wildcat snapped.

"And I think Khronus needs to go…" Accinon replied angrily.

Up above, the flyers hid above a thin layer of canopy, wondering what was going on. Both the cats were saying that one or the other of the flyers was the bigger threat.

"Kid knows what he's talking about…" Pteradonna approved.

"What have you, got a cog that need de-rusting? The girl's gotta strong case…" Khronus said, smugly ruffling his feathers.

"Puh-leez! It's so obvious I'm their biggest threat," the femme replied equally if not more smugly.

"Says the featherless wonder!"

While the two were distracted, Souris (with a little trouble, as the cats were genuinely bickering about something or other now) yelled, "Maintenant!" to Accinon and Wildcat. They fired their weapons simultaneously upwards.

The pair or airborne Predacons, still in the midst of their argument, heard a strange whistling sound emanating from beneath them. They sighed and stared at each other in defeat as the two missiles hit them.

As they were comically catapulted away, entangled in each other's loose parts and sparking circuitry, the distancing sound of short-hand verbal abuses could be heard as their trail of smoke disappeared beyond the Maximals' sightline.

The brother and sister looked at each other, silent for a second, and burst out laughing.

Through gasps of giggles, Wildcat managed to utter, "Man, those two're worse than…"

"bYou/b two…" Grey finished for him. He raised a brow at their bowed heads.

"I 'ope you two 'ave learned your lesson aujourd'hui," Souris said, placing one hand on her hip, and pointing the other one at the siblings, "see vhat 'appens vhen you get at each ozer's sroats? Nossing but trouble, mon cher, non?" she asked Greyback, who smiled.

"C'mon. Let's get to Pangaea Two. I'll tell the boss to send a couple of units to make the exchange properly, kay?" The three with him nodded, they all transformed into beast mode and followed the grey wolf in the direction of their secondary base.

As they walked past a large mahogany buttress root, one beady black eye appeared out of nowhere, and followed the four Maximals.

--

A few hours later, in Arachnikahn's personal chambers, he hung suspended in his life support tube. "Well?" He asked the two Predacons before him.

"We were…unsuccessful in destroying the Maximals…" Kronus muttered unhappily.

"I see…Anything else?" Kahn enquired.

The eagle and pterodactyl lowered their heads in shame.

"I might have something…" A hissing voice echoed through the chamber from behind the disgraced duo. Pteradonna rolled her optics and turned around to face the voice, placing both hands on her hips.

"What?" she asked, unimpressed.

"Silence. Let…her speak…" Kahn wheezed, "What have you…discovered?"

"The existence of a second Maximal base…and its location…"

--

Spanner was happily whistling as he walked down a corridor in the cavernous mountain of a base. He entered his private quarters to find Rattrap there.

"…Can I help you, man?" the macaw inquired, wondering what the rat was doing in his room. And why he was smiling.

"Eh, jus' droppin' by teh offer my congratulations to the first bot teh ever oust me at a game." He raised what appeared to be a beaker full of liquid energon, which he 'withdrew' from his own stash on the Axalon. A malicious grin formed on Spanner's face.

"Wanna try another one, homie?" he asked, teeth exposed at the full extent of his smile. Rattrap smirked and tweaked a brow.

"Yeh're on."

"Possibly something to do with what you got there? Winner takes all?"

"I was hopin' yeh'd say that. Let's go rookie!"

Barely 10 cycles later, Spanner was staring into Rattrap's optics, which seemed to have turned a strange shade of magenta. "Brothuh, you goin' doooowwwwwnnn…"

And he was on the floor. Rattrap slammed his tube onto the table, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms in a satisfied way.

"Nobody messes with dis rat."

He grinned as he picked his beaker back up; and self-proclaimed himself a genius as he pulled out a flask of water he used to…'soften' his own drink.

"What goes around comes around…" he left the wasted macaw in his happy place and added, just before he exited the room, "…sucka…"


	6. Unearthed Pt 1

Beast Wars REBIRTH

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

Chapter 6: UNEARTHED PT 1

Rhinox was aboard the Hercules getting a few things together. He was mildly excited, for he was going to examine one of the Maximals' power generators somewhere in Sector 24, south of their current position. He didn't need much; just some scanning equipment.

Once he had all his scanning and repair equipment (for he was informed he might be a significant help to improve said generator), he radioed Pangaea One. It was Shellshock who answered him.

"Pangaea One here. How's it hangin', Rhinox?"

"I think I've got all I need," Rhinox replied, as he read his list, "all I need now are the coordinates for my destination and I'll be on my way."

"Kay, but I'll have to talk to Jag about a buddy to go with…oh…hang on a sec…" his voice quietened, and he appeared to be talking to someone else next to him, "…oh, ok…Here, you might as well talk to her…"

He handed Rhinox over to the leopard, who greeted him a lot more warmly than when they first met.

"Listen, about this buddy system…" Rhinox began, awkwardly, "…it's all well and good, but I think I can manage by myself."

"Well, if I'm perfectly honest…" she replied, leaning closer to the microphone, her voice quieter and a bit muffled, "…the buddy system is really only for the younger bots." She kept looking from side to side to make sure no one could hear her, "Obviously, people like yourself and Optimus can take care of yourselves, but it's just precautionary. A lot of our units aren't used to combat, and don't always know how to handle it. However, I do insist you meet with one of the fields units close to where you're going."

"I understand," Rhinox replied, "so how about those coordinates?"

--

"This is it, Bolt. You ready?"

"As I'll ever be, my dear…"

She sighed, praying this ludicrous plot would succeed. It was only two days ago that she started Silverbolt's 'rehabilitation' into the Predacon ranks. It hadn't gone at all according to plan. He was too…Maximal. But today was their deadline, and they could only hope for the best. If worse came to worst, Blackarachnia would be accepted and he wouldn't. She knew a lot more about being a Predacons than he did after all.

They approached the 'desk' inside a derelict warehouse outside the military sector, where a surly looking mech was admitting bots in through a single door.

They stood in front of him for nearly a minute before he looked up at them. He gave them a once over, and sighed exasperatedly.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Excuse me?" Blackarachnia demanded.

"Listen chumps, I've got a lot of **serious** work to do, so if you're quite finished wasting my time, beat it." He waved an arrogant hand at them and proceeded to push the button to let the next guys in.

"What are you talking about?" the widow asked, placing a hand on her hip. Silverbolt, who had been instructed to say absolutely nothing, followed her example by folding his arms in order to look impatient…though he didn't know why.

"Puh-leez!" the desk bot replied, laughing slightly now, "Do you think I'm an idiot? Every transformer on Cybertron knows that the beast bots from Earth were all Maximals!"

Blackarachnia didn't approve of his tone. "Not all of them…" she replied darkly.

"Yeah, **apart** from your fancy hood ornament. Get out of my sight before I call security…"

"Call them then. We'll see who's a Maximal around here!"

He looked up at her questioningly. "What?"

"Listen, bub," she leant an arm on the desk, "the only reason I ever said I was a Maximal was because they were winning…" she held up a claw behind her back to shut the fuzor up, for she could feel him about to crack, "…any self respecting Predacon would've done the exact same thing."

He laughed. "A Predacon would not betray their cause…"

"And I didn't. I'm here now, aren't I?"

He wasn't enjoying this conversation one bit. "But you did help them defeat Megatron…" he protested.

"Yes, but don't you think by now I've learned a thing or two about them by now?" She grinned and winked. He stroked his chin thoughtfully, finally starting to consider it.

"What about this guy?" he asked, nudging his head at Silverbolt.

"Oh, him?" she stammered slightly, "Oh, he's also a former Predacon. The Maximals actually forced him to join, altered his programming and everything…" She silently slammed her foot on his when she heard him utter the beginning of a protesting sentence.

The clerk was not buying it. "I think I'd like to hear it from him, personally."

Blackarachnia glanced nervously sideways at Silverbolt, who ruffled his feathers uncomfortably. The bot at the desk got up and came around to face Silverbolt. He was only a head taller than the widow, and not quite the fuzor's height, but he was still well-built.

"Well?" he asked.

"…Well what?" Silverbolt answered after a moment of silence. The clerk raised a brow ridge.

"Where's that Predacon, huh? C'mon, I'd like to meet him…" He was grinning broadly, obviously enjoying himself. Silverbolt was starting to get agitated. He lanced over at Blackarachnia, who made several gestures indicating he get tough.

"Come on. Come on!" the mech demanded. He started to poke at Silverbolt's chest plate and tug at his feathers, which agitated the fuzor.

"Sir, I must ask you to refrain from doing that…" he stated blandly, his ear mask twitching.

"Whatcha gonna do about it? Or are you too Maximal to do anythin' about it?" the desk bot taunted. Blackarachnia watched on, unsure of what would happen.

As the poking and tugging ensued, something inside Silverbolt snapped at the word 'Maximal'. He grabbed the bot by the collar plate and soared to the high ceiling of the abandoned warehouse.

"I se you haven't got any jets on you," he taunted uncharacteristically, "let's hope you're made of rubber, then."

The bot merely laughed. "Yeah. Like you'd do that."

Silverbolt shrugged. "Your funeral buddy boy."

He let go. The bot fell at least 20 feet, but before he hit the ground, something grabbed his leg. Silverbolt lazily hovered above the ground, dangling the bot.

"Aw, there's so little room to play in here. Why don't we take this outside, where there's miles of sky, huh? C'moooon!" The bot was finally starting to panic.

"Hey look man, I've got work to do…" Though that was not his biggest concern at the moment.

"What do **you** think, Blackarachnia? I think the construction pits just south of here might be fun. Lots of sharp, pointy objects!"

Blackarachnia just stared up the pair, mouth agape. She wasn't sure whether to be worried or impressed.

"Alright, alright, you've made your point! Yeesh. Now will you let me go?" the hanging bot demanded.

"Interesting choice of words, don't you think?" Silverbolt stated sluggishly, loosening one finger.

"Alright, bonehead, I think he gets the message," Blackarachnia interjected, waving her claws up at him, "we don't want to bump of the recruiting agent just yet, do we?"

"I suppose not.."

Silverbolt finally put the bot down, making sure he made a little thump as he did. Muttering, without looking at either of them, the clerk typed in a few things on a pad on his desk and pressed a button and pointed them through another door at the back of the building.

"Not bad, bonehead," complimented Blackarachnia, moving towards the exit.

Silverbolt nodded, breathing deeply, not entirely sure what just happened. Nonetheless, he shook his head and followed his love through the second door.

_Now wasn't that fun? You can't avoid me forever bonehead…_

--

Cheetor was bored that day, and decided to do some reading up on whatever files he could bring up on the computer. He could see who he was fighting with, as well as what he was up against.

He skimmed through the first few files: Jagna, Greyback, Skylark, Nightshaft, whatever. He knew enough about them for the time being. He repeatedly pressed the 'next' button to go through all the Maximals. He stopped a little longer on Sleek (a femme who had caught his attention a few days earlier), and then it hit him just how many times he was pressing the 'next' button, and therefore how many files there were. And he was still on his own faction.

He instructed the computer to bring up a list of faction statistics…

There were 33 Maximals in total, spread across three bases: 12 males and 21 females. Cheetor gaped at the screen. That would please Rattrap, at the very least. But now he, Rattrap, Optimus and Rhinox were there, the total tipped to 37.

Then he brought up the Predacon list. Not long ago, there were nearly as many Predacons as before they arrived. 29 to be exact, and almost equally divided by gender (just one more male). It was strange that so many stasis pods from their old ship hadn't been activated during their first visit. The Beast Wars might have gone by a lot quicker if Optimus had half the number of Maximals Jagna did now.

But that hardly mattered. Just because there were more of them, that didn't mean the Maximals were at a complete advantage.

Optimus, meanwhile, was pleased to observe that the Maximals of Pangaea had welcomed him and his team so warmly. Even their leader was feeling more comfortable having them around. And he had been told that she was hard to please.

In fact, she approached Optimus, Rattrap and Cheetor that afternoon with a proposition. She invited them to their second base.

"I think it's about time you knew your way around," she commented, oddly calm.

"Does this mean we're 'allowed' to know how stuff works now?" Rattrap asked, trying his best not to be sarcastic. She nodded. They had broken her outer shell of a distrusting person…at last.

"One thing though…" she said abruptly. Rattrap rolled his optics, "Nothing like that," she said defensively, "it's just a matter of how we're going to get your fearless leader in."

They stared blankly at her. So she explained that Pangaea Two had one main entrance: a swallow hole barely big enough for Shellshock to fit down. And he was one of their biggest bots. She said the only alternative was for Optimus to…

"Swim in?" the three mechs chimed in unison.

Jagna nodded, then tilted her head. "You not fond of the water?" she asked them. Rattrap and Cheetor gave a shudder. "What about you, Optimus?" He shrugged.

"To be honest, I've never entered the water in this form…or any, even…" Come to think of it, had he ever been in the water at all? At this, the leopard femme pursed her lips.

"Well…there's always a first time…" she stated suggestively. Optimus looked at her. He had never taken swimming into consideration before, as he was not a water creature, nor had he ever needed to. But then again, neither was she.

"How do you stay under the water for so long?" He was referring to the 15 minute inland swim to the cave of her third base. Se smiled broadly at him.

"Agree to try and I'll tell you…" He smiled back.

"Alright."

From her subspace, she withdrew a small mouthpiece. She explained that even though as robots they didn't need to 'breathe', their beast disguises did, which in turn meant that they actually did have to. Confusing though it was, it made sense. It seems that every beast era transformer had some sort of problem adjusting to the beast modes. The Maximal leader explained that they had learned this through…unfortunate accidents…

"As for the whole water-getting-into-our-joints thing…" she continued, holding the mouthpiece up, "…you're just going to have to get used to that." She grinned at Cheetor, who was expecting something a little more spectacular.

She didn't think Optimus would have much trouble, for his shiny form didn't look like it was susceptible to a little water. He was hoping the same thing.

The plan was that they would all head in the direction of Pangaea Two, where they would separate. Rattrap and Cheetor would meet with another maximal to guide them to the main entrance, while Optimus and Jagna would head for the second entrance.

"We might as well get going, it's quite a way," she suggested.

"I could get us there in no time," Optimus offered. She shook her head.

"What's the point of that? The landscape has probably changed since your last visit," she said with a smile.

Optimus smiled and nodded. A perfect excuse for sightseeing, he supposed.

--

"Why me?"

"Because I ssssssaid ssssso."

"Yeah, but, but…WHY?!"

Serpentia glared at the reluctant troop.

"Becausssse…" she reiterated, "…if you don't, there sssshhall be ssssome exxxplaining to do…but not to me…" She bared her yellow fangs in a cruel grin, looking behind the bot, who turned and saw the door to Kahn's chambers.

"You…you wouldn't…aw, come on! Please Tia!"

"What have I told you about addressssing me in that manner?!" the snake hissed aggressively, "Now be a good little insect drone and follow my orderssss."

The femme she was speaking to bowed her head in a sulk. She transformed into beast mode, a blue-tailed dragonfly with big, red eyes. She turned and buzzed unhappily away. Serpentia shook her head after her.

"Al that fusssss over a Maximal. Sssshhheesssshhh."

--

"Secure Code accepted. Processing…"

_Click. Whirr. Bzt._

"Analysis completed. Accessing data…"

A large red hand picked up the vile in the scanning unit. It contained clear, blue liquid. But the hand's owner gave it a shake, and it began to glow with streaks of silver and green running through it. Once it was still, it became clear again.

Ultra Magnus walked up behind his old friend. There was only one light source in the dismal underground lab which swung from the ceiling, only just lighting up the table where he was working.

"Well?" the tanker enquired.

"It seems our initial comprehensions were merely subliminal to the greater scale of this thing. Our ineptitude to warrant such an assumption is quite perplexing, when we consider that what we actually expected to see in this compound was…"

"Perceptor…" Ultra Magnus moaned.

"Ahem, yes…" The red Autobot technician rubbed the back of his neck and continued, "It is almost exactly what we thought it was."

"Almost?"

"Almost as in there is an extra element in here that I cannot identify. Yet, anyway. It's going to take more time than you can give me, I'm afraid."

Ultra Magnus nodded grimly.

"You know, you'd be better facilitated back up on the surface. And exposure to the moonlight might do your power cores some good," he suggested, looking his old friend up and down. Many of the Autobots had died away, and only a few remained, including the odd Decepticon here and there. Ultra Magnus was one of the few survivors of the Great War to live out in the open. The remaining survivors, such as Perceptor and various others, preferred to keep their existence concealed.

"Thank you, my friend, but I am perfectly equipped right where I am."

"You won't last down here for much longer…" Magnus added, his tone growing more worried.

"Neither will you up there…" Perceptor replied.

The two Autobots looked carefully at each other, each knowing exactly what the other was thinking. They didn't need to say it.

Perceptor got distracted by a muffled squawk that came from a shelf to his left. He narrowed his optics, and exclaimed, "I say, is that Lazorbeak?"

"Mm. He's been following me around for a few days now." Ultra Magnus replied, "I've tried to ignore him, but he won't take a hint. Kind of like his master, eh?" the bot joked. He didn't even try to hide the fact he knew the winged cassette was tailing him.

"Yes, well, I won't have that thing in my lab." The professor stated firmly. Magnus chuckled again.

"It's alright, I'm leaving anyway. He'll follow me out. Thanks again, Perceptor." They shook hands, and Ultra Magnus left his old comrade in the piece of his secret home, which few on the planet actually knew about.

Perceptor looked back at the vile that he had left on the table, squinting. It began to glow bright white without provocation. Perceptor's optics widened.

"Fascinating…"

As he left, Ultra Magnus heard Perceptor seal his chamber. He shook his head sadly, and continued walking.

"Come on then, Lazorbeak," he said lazily and indifferently. Not acknowledging the comment, the metallic bird flew after him.

About 15 cycles later as he walked down a corridor towards an elevator, Ultra Magnus received a transmission from Diamond Nine.

"Diamond Nine to Ultra Magnus. Come in Ultra Magnus." Her tone was urgent.

"Ultra Magnus here, report Diamond Nine."

"Finally! Where have you been, we've been trying to get a hold of you for over half a megacycle!" She sounded very rushed, and was talking quickly.

"Apologies, there must have been some bad reception," he lied. Perceptor had in fact installed communications dampeners covering a whole parsec around his underground home.

"You've gotta get your tanker up here now, Ultra Magnus. We have a Code Blue situation, scenario Gamma."

He screeched to a halt, his optics widening. "You don't mean…"

"Yeah. Megatron is gone."

--

Xaphron was zooming across the ice sheet in beast mode, not far behind Rhinox (who had taken the Maximals' hover platform), her thorax twitching uncomfortably in the chilly breeze.

"Slaggit, It's cold!" the insect complained as she buzzed over the icy savannah. "So not only do I have to deal with that Maximal gargantuan, I have to do it with my wings frozen. Thanks a lot, leader…" she complained, beating her wings faster than usual to keep them from turning stiff with cold.

She swerved to a stop suddenly when she saw the deserted hovercraft. Someone must have forgotten to cloak it. She rubbed her skinny arms together. "This'll do better than anything else on offer here…"

She flew excitedly towards it, but when she was barely four feet from it, it disappeared. Unfortunately, she was travelling so fast, she couldn't stop herself. She was flattened against the force shield, then catapulted away from it in a light show of sparks. Slightly sizzled, she picked herself up and rubbed her head.

_I hate being a Predacon…we always lose…_

Then she caught a glimpse of footprints in the snow. It was not snowing, and there was no wind, so they were quite clear to her. She grinned. _A little smaller than I recall, but that must be the Maximal…_

Meanwhile, Rhinox was starting to ever-so-slightly regret agreeing to this mission. Or did he volunteer? Either way, as he trudged his way through the bitterly cold ice having left the sheltered comfort of the hover-platform, he was starting to regret it.

He regretted it even more when he was hit in the back by a convoy of bullets. He fell face first into the ice.

He lifted his head, spat out a mouthful of snow and groaned. Xaphron was smiling to herself (no one could ever tell if she was smiling because of her mandibles, both in beast and robot mode).

He stood up and turned around to face a skinny insect femme bot. She didn't look like it would take much to bring her down; a gust of wind, perhaps. But she could fly, which was an advantage she held over Rhinox.

As he fired at her, he came to a conclusion: she was a female incarnation of Waspinator, at least in terms of buzzing around avoiding as many bullets as possible. Though he had to hand it to her, she seemed to have a lot more coordination than the wasp.

And she had better aim. She managed to hit Rhinox again, throwing him back a little. She landed in front of him, twitching her mandibles.

"Wait a minute…who are you? Aren't you supposed to be…"

"Xaphron! Over here…"

Without really thinking, the dragonfly turned around at the sound of her name.

"Oh no. No! NO!"

SPLAT.

Before Xaphron was flattened by the enormous hairy foot, she whimpered something about 'This is what I meant'.

Rhinox looked up and faced a giant woolly mammoth. It was smiling at him, so he was thankfully reassured it was a Maximal.

"Uh, thanks…" he began slowly.

"No problem, hun," the pachyderm replied in a very, very deep female voice. She transformed, towering over Rhinox by a least two feet. She bore a green and gold colour scheme, much like his, but was clearly a femme bot, though quite heavily-built.

"Name's Stampede," She smiled more broadly at him.

"Rhinox, and thanks again," he replied, returning the smile.

"So, Rhinox," she placed her hands behind her back coyly, "what's a big, hunk o' Maximal like you doin' in a barren tundra like this?" She had slowly walked towards and ended up behind him and placed an enormous arm around his neck, her golden shoulder plates creaking as she did so. Her smile had grown, if possible, even wider.

"Uhhhh…"

He didn't know quite how to react. His first instinct was to spin his way from under her arm.

"Oh, I get it!" Stampede playfully winked, and Rhinox attempted another smile, but his mouth ended up resembling a crooked coat hanger.

After that, they walked together across the icy plain.

"So what kind of generator are we talking about?" Rhinox asked the gigantic woman.

"It's a make-shift geo-thermal reactor. Kind of like the one at Pangaea One, only we ain't got no lava here, y'know?" She laughed at her own joke, nudging him. He tried his best to conceal that she almost knocked him over.

"Still, that's pretty impressive, considering you only had salvaged parts," he commented kindly. She nodded. She held a hand out for him to stop.

"Well, here we are!"

"Here we are where?" he asked, confused. He looked in all directions around him, but saw nothing but the many mounds of snow they had already passed.

She smiled her broad smile again. "Check **this** out…"

She bent down and started brushing some loose snow aside. Under about half a foot was a switch. She pulled it, and from out of the snow rose a large, bulky machine dotted with radars, solar panels and pressure monitors. On the large black screen was a green grid outline of the surrounding area and the pipelines that lead to each major geyser in the region.

"Nice, huh?"

"Very," Rhinox replied. He didn't think the machines these Maximals managed to build from salvaged parts would ever cease to amaze him.

"Well then, I've been instructed to allow you to…help yourself," Stampede added with another grin.

Later, while Rhinox busily tapped away at the keys on the console of the generator, Stampede was on watch. Her shoulders tensed up as she saw a small black dot about a parsec from them across the icy plain. She tapped Rhinox on the shoulder. He turned to see what the problem was.

"I don't see anything…" he commented. Stampede squinted.

"Then whaddya call that?" She pointed to the spec, which was moving. The pair of them watched the dot suspiciously. Then they heard a strange hissing. Rhinox turned back to the generator.

"Is it this?" He asked. When she did not answer, he turned around again. She had shifted herself into a defensive position. There was another dot now, and it was coming towards them, getting bigger as the hissing got louder too.

"Get behind me!" she yelled suddenly. Bewildered, he hastily complied. Before he could ask why or interjected that he was perfectly capable of handling himself, she had taken an enormous shield out and held it in front of her. Suddenly, a large explosion threw him backwards against the generator, and her on top of him.

A second later, he grunted and pushed her off him. She was quite a bit larger than him, so it was slightly difficult.

"Stampede?" he asked her hurriedly, "Are you alright?" She groaned and stood up, clutching her stomach.

"Yeah, that missile was a small one…for now…"

Rhinox set his scanners on where that projectile had come from. The dot was no longer there. He heard her snarl.

"I hate that little…"

"Who?" asked a very confused rhino.

"Keep those scanners o' yours on high alert, we ain't alone here." she instructed seriously, her playful tone gone.

Rhinox complied, and withdrew his chain guns. She nodded approvingly.

"There!"

Rhinox turned on his heel and aimed, ready to fire. Standing about fifty metres from them was a black and white flightless bird.

"…It's a penguin…" he stated blankly. Stampede ignored him and fired at it. It speedily dodged by sliding out of the way on its belly. Rhinox shrugged, deciding it was obviously not a real penguin, and followed it with a shower of bullets.

Avoiding each one, the flightless bird dropped down on its belly and slid towards them, Rhinox and Stampede's bullets following him every meter. But before he reached them, he swerved to his left and headed for the machine. However, Rhinox managed to block his path, and the bird headed away again.

"You ain't getting our generator!" the femme yelled at the tiny bird. She transformed into beast mode and followed him, her enormous feet causing miniature earthquakes as she swung her head from side to side in order to put her trunk and tusks to effective use. The penguin was fast, but not fast enough to avoid a whack on the side of the head from a pillar of ivory.

In mid-air, the penguin suddenly transformed. He landed on his feet on the ice and skidded across it like a figure skater. In fact, the transformer had blades on the soles of his feet.

Stampede slammed her foot on the ice. A large crack travelled from her foot to where the transformer was headed, and he plummeted through the ice. Stampede watched the ice pieces float and the bubbles die away.

"That'll slow him down a bit. The ice freezes over pretty quick here, but he'll find somewhere to resurface. We need to hide this thing…"

"Why's he after it? The schematics I reviewed on the Predacons' base said they had their own power generators."

"Yeah, well, they can't seem to get enough power," she stated bitterly, "Come on. This thing is actually a lot bigger than it looks."

Indeed it was. Rhinox didn't have enough time to have a proper look at it before they were attacked. The phrase, 'tip of the iceberg' came to mind when Stampede quickly showed him what lay under the ice. The machinery extended miles beneath them, and he was told that it stretched outwards for miles as well, so as to reach as many of the geysers in the area. There were also insulated pipelines that she explained were only active during melting season, and they were used to carry the meltwater from surrounding ice sheets and glaciers to a secondary hydro-generator.

"Very impressive…" Rhinox quietly mumbled. These Maximals were quite the scavengers. Some of their salvaged technology was more efficient than standard mechanisms on Cybertron.

"This is one of the most important power supplies to us on this planet, **the** most in this region. Arctech, the one in the tux, is a scientific forager, if he gets his dirty little flippers on this contraption…oi…"

"And not only that, we seem to have another Predacon interested in it," Rhinox said. Stampede laughed.

"Psh. That little bug is terrified of me. She won't try anything…on her…own…" She trailed off mid-sentence, coming to a realisation. Rhinox came to the same conclusion.

"They'll be sending more…" he said slowly. She nodded.

"Archtech must've alerted their base of our location. Dangit!" She slammed the heel of her palm into her forehead, "I've never let him get so close before…slag! Slag! Slag! Slag!" She hammered her cranium harder and harder with each curse, and Rhinox had to stop her before she caused any damage. She came to a realisation: "Xaphron! Damn! No wonder she was such an easy target today!" She shook her head at not realising the dragonfly was a diversion.

"We'll just have to hide this thing extra carefully," Rhinox assured her. She huffed, explaining that was easier said than done. Because of the vast scale of this project, there was a lot of ground to cover and conceal. And Archtech could be under any of the ice sheets, waiting for them.

"Easier said than done, hun…" she replied, in a bit of a slump. Rhinox shrugged. Well, he wasn't going to know what to do anyhow, was he?

"Come on, show me how it's done. I'm a fast learner."

--

Optimus, Cheetor, Rattrap and Jagna had been making their way to Pangaea Two for almost a megacycle, but they hardly noticed. The Axalon crew had spent a lot of time inside either the mountain base or the Hercules to have noticed what was now outside.

The landscape had indeed changed. When left to its own devices, undisturbed for however long, Earth could work wonders with itself.

They had left the harsh, mountainous region that Pangaea One occupied and were now in a flatter, mellower landscape. The mountains were far behind them, but ahead they could see a limestone cliff, cut into for miles by a magnificent river.

They followed the gorge for about a parsec before Jagna instructed Rattrap and Cheetor to climb up to the top and continue upstream for another kilometre.

"You'll meet a badger when you get close…" she began, then Cheetor cut in.

"Misty?" he asked. He remembered his 'escort' well. She was a nice bot. Jagna nodded, and they went their separate ways.

"How far now?" Optimus asked the Maximal leader. He guessed they were close, as the entrance was via a waterway.

"Just here," she said, nudging her head to where the gorge widened out and the limestone cliff face began to slope.

She transformed into robot mode and withdrew the mouthpiece from her subspace. "Ready to get wet?" she asked, tossing one to him. He shrugged and nodded, deciding to remain in beast mode as he didn't know how wide the passage was.

The river seemed to branch out at where she entered it. She gestured him to follow her down one of the smaller segments of the wide river.

_Here goes…_

He put on his own mouthpiece, entered the water after her, and submerged.

He was surprised at how quickly he took to the water. It was almost like being in the air, something he had been accustomed to for quite some time.

The river suddenly became very deep, deep enough that even he could not stand with his head above the water. He could see Jagna just ahead of him, the light glistening through the glassy surface.

They seemed to be heading right for the sloping cliff face. Optimus wondered why, but then he saw the femme dive deeper, so he followed. He saw a dark opening where the riverbed met the bottom of the wall.

They swam into it.

He didn't quite know how long or how far they went, but when they finally resurfaced some time later, he was once again awed by the sight of the Maximals' resilience and hard work.

They were in a chamber, the second of three, that were laid out next to each other in a triangle. The one they were in looked like it was for recreational purposes, the third (to their right) had nine large data bank machines in it, and the first and largest chamber was filled with even more machinery. Not as much as in Pangaea One, but just as functional. In fact, Optimus recognised the console on the largest wall (the wall with the fewest stalactites or stalagmites) as Megatron's old holographic orb. He wasn't aware that thing survived Tigerhawk's attack.

Jagna smiled proudly at the look on his face. They entered the main chamber and were greeted by Bounder, whom Optimus hadn't actually met yet. Then he spotted Rattrap and Cheetor.

"Nice, huh? My kinda place," Rattrap said approvingly.

"Yeah, a giant hole in the ground," teased Cheetor.

"Actually, I've been meaning to ask you about that," Optimus turned to Jagna, puzzled, "why are all your bases located underground?"

She shrugged. "Where else can we go, really? And besides, we're well hidden."

Optimus tilted his head. It sounded like a safe assumption, but being underground did have its disadvantages as well.

"Mates! G'day there!"

Sandskimmer hopped up to them with a big smile on his face.

"Haven't seen ya since the swap! How's about a tour then, eh?"

--

Meanwhile, back on the ice, Stampede was explaining the still glitch-ridden cloaking procedure. Then her on-boar computer began to beep. She took out a small electronic pad that had a grid displayed on the monitor, with 7 large red blips moving towards the centre.

"Aw, slag! They've sent their entire aquatic platoon!"

"Go!" Rhinox instructed, "I think I can manage from here. Hold them off as long as you can, I'll join you when I'm finished."

Stampede nodded, put the pad back in her subspace and ran towards the direction of the many Predacon blips.

Rhinox was hurriedly following the mammoth's instructions, hardly noticing a long, thin creature slithering up behind him. Until it was too late.

He turned to see the thing at his feet. The water snake flipped its tail onto his leg and sent a powerful surge of energy right through him. He yelled and fell to the floor. The eel transformed. It was Elektra. She gave the Maximal another little shock for fun.

Just then, the penguin that attacked the Maximals earlier arrived, sliding on his belly.

"Archtech, Terrorise!"

He transformed and, ignoring Elektra, went straight for the console on the half-hidden generator.

"Your welcome for getting rid of him for you…" the eel spat, placing a hand on her hip.

"I coulda taken him…"

"Yeah, once he was alone," she jeered back, laughing at him.

"Just keep them busy, I'm working here!" he snapped, still refusing to look at her, focusing all his attention on the machine.

"Watch it before I shock that tux right off you!" Elektra retorted, "Just remember this ain't a priority."

"Since when did you care about priorities? 'Sides, I've been after this thing for stellar cycles, I am not passing this up. So beat it Sparky!" the Predacon tech retorted.

"Oooh, very original…" She took out a medium-size rocket launcher and shot a hole in the ice. She put her weapon back in her subspace and dove through the hole and into the water. At least she could join in bringing the mammoth down 6 to 1. That was always fun.

Stampede, about 200 meters away, was kicking off a large pike that had attacked itself onto her leg with its teeth. She was trying to get as far away from the ice where there were several surfacing holes, but it was too late. A torpedo was fired from beneath the ice, blowing an enormous hole big enough for all the Predacons to emerge from.

"Octotron, Terrorise!"

"K-Scale, Terrorise!"

"Rockjaw, Terrorise!"

"Blackscale, Terrorise!"

Those four Predacons transformed simultaneously as the emerged from the icy water. Octotron was a large purple octopus, who gripped the rough surface with his tentacles as he climbed out. In robot mode he was tall, bulky and purple accented with gold, his tentacles emerging from his back, like Rampage, but they harboured machine guns, like Tarantulas' original form.

K-Scale resembled a creature from Egyptian mythology: he was a chimera, a fusion of a crocodile and a dog, and he had the same ruthlessness and ferocity as the myths portrayed. He growled and immediately began slashing at Stampede's legs with a chainsaw made up of the teeth of his crocodile head.

The next two were femme bots: the large hippo was Rockjaw, almost as heavily built as the Maximal mammoth femme, but nowhere near as tall. However, she had great strength, which she used to full effect. Blackscale, a jet black iguana with aqua marine frills, followed her.

"Aw, come on, this ain't fair!" Stampede moaned, kicking off the pike and running for her life. The fish lay flopping on the ground.

"Hey! Get back here!" he yelled. "Trawler, Terrorise!"

When he transformed, he was still on the floor, flailing pathetically. He hated being on land. Blackscale ran past him and yelled, "Get up you lazy tailpipe!"

"I'm getting, I'm getting!" He got up eventually, and ran after the group…or at least tried to, for he was used to the water and constantly tripped over his own fins (that joined together when he was in the water).

Back at the generator, Rhinox was coming to. He groaned and looked up. The penguin was in robot mode and had taken the board of the console off and was fiddling with the wiring inside. He quietly reached for his chain gun a little way away from him on the ground, and stood up.

"Hey!" he said, catching Arctech's attention, "You must be lost, 'cause that's not yours…"

The Predacon technician stepped back, putting his hands up. The two stared each other down for a few seconds. Archtech reached for his weapon, but Rhinox riddled him with bullets before he could get to it. He picked up the out-cold Predacon and flung him as far as he could.

"Tells you how much I'd trust you…"

He scanned the surrounding area and spotted movement near the horizon. He zoomed in to see Stampede fighting off (or attempting to fight off)…six Predacons!

He ran to aid her. He was halfway there when a hand somehow made its way through a tiny hole in the thick ice, grabbed his leg, and pulled him under with such force it might have knocked a smaller transformer out. Fortunately, Rhinox remained conscious and focused, but he also found himself no longer in the open air, but in the ocean.

_Not again_, he thought bitterly. He didn't have many fond memories of being this wet.

He saw a shark coming towards him, fast. But it wasn't entirely a shark…it was a fuzor: half shark, half canine. It must have been what pulled him below the waves. He got out his second gun, only to discover it was useless underwater.

_Slag!_

"Going somewhere, sunshine?" the shark taunted as it glided slowly towards him. It was femme bot. _Geez, where do they make these femmes?_ thought Rhinox.

Next thing he knew she had clamped her jaws into his arm. And since they weren't real shark teeth, but made of razor-sharp steel, they sank right through his armour. A storm of bubbles escaped his mouth as he felt several rows of teeth, and grunted in pain.

Suddenly, she let go of him to transform into robot mode. She closely resembled old sketches of a Sharkticon, as her tail was perched on her back and her limbs were made up of her canine parts. The top half of her shark head lay on the chest, and the teeth, which doubled up as blades, lay diagonally across her chest like a belt of bullets.

Once again, she tried to take a bit out of him. But although Rhinox didn't particularly enjoy being in the water, he knew how to handle himself in it. Just because his guns didn't work it didn't mean his fists weren't.

She was fairly hefty, like most of the Predacon women he'd bumped into (which he still found bizarre), and her jaws were powerful, but not as much as when in beast mode.

Rhinox eventually managed to rid himself of his toothy limpet by kicking her in the face with the side of his leg (covered in shark spikes). The fuzor whimpered and thrashed backwards, shaking her head. Rhinox took this opportunity to clamber out of the water, using the blade he 'borrowed' from his attacker as a pickaxe, and hoisted himself up.

Unfortunately, it didn't take long for Razorblade to follow him. Being part-Great White shark, she easily leapt out of the water and ended up on dry land in robot mode.

"Rhinox to anybody! We got some serious Pred trouble at our end! We're outnumbered!" he yelled into the com-link, firing at Razorblade while trying to aid Stampede, who was grossly outnumbered and barely holding her own.

To Be Continued…


	7. Unearthed Pt 2

--

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

Chapter 7: UNEARTHED PT 2

At Pangaea Two, every unit heard Rhinox's distress call.

"I want any available units in that area to assist them." Jagna ordered, "Call our own aqua team, have them converge on their position and apprehend the Predacons. We can't risk anything. Go, go, go!"

Sunset went to the console and brought up a 3D map of said area. "Sky Scraper and Slapstix are close by, boss."

"Then send them. Signia and the others are going to need the extra firepower."

"I'll go too," Optimus insisted.

"Not just yet. We've got it covered, thanks," Jagna assured him, a little impatiently.

"Rhinox is out there, I need to…"

"So is Stampede!" she erupted. He quietened down, realising what he just said.

"Please, Optimus…" she begged, "He's in good hands. Listen…I've done my part, so now it's your turn to try and trust us…OK?" She looked very intensely into his optics. He sighed, and nodded.

--

Responding to the distress call in the southern sector, a group of mammals and a bird converged at a meeting point near a stationary iceberg known as Titan. Streamline, a polar bear and his seal companion Slapstix had swum from the nearest ice sheet, an albatross named Sky Scraper flew in from his patrol over the mainland, while Streamline and a bottlenose dolphin came from Base Three.

"Hey, anyone else notice that every bot in this squad has a name that begins with 'S'? Heh, we should be the 'S-quad'!" the seal chortled as the group swam towards their destination, "Getit? Squad? Ha! 'Cause if you say it fast enough, it sounds like…"

"Will you shut up you little sea mutt? This is serious, 'kay?" Sky Scraper spat, slapping Slapstix beneath the waves with his webbed feet.

"Just trying to make light of the situation…" retorted a disheartened Slapstix. The albatross shook his head and soared higher into the air. His eyes zoomed in about a mile ahead of him.

"Land's coming in fast, get ready down there…" he instructed.

"Yes sir, Mr. Bossy, sir!" Slapstix replied sarcastically, using his tail to splash the flyer when he swooped down again.

"Why, you little…"

"Ah, ah, ah! This situation is serious. Focus, Sky Scraper, focus…"

The seal chortled when he heard the bird curse inaudibly above him.

"Cool it, both of you!" the polar bear managed to say as the waves splashed against his mouth as he swam at the surface, "Save that mean spirited hostility for the enemies."

The seal and bird mumbled.

"Heh, I just got it…" said Slapstix, "**Cool** it!"

--

Elsewhere, at that very moment, Serpentia and Crowbeak were hiding behind a bunch of trees not far from a familiar swallow hole.

"Sssshe wasssn't the besssst dissstraction, but it took the offfff guard fffor a while, at leasssssst." Serpentia commented, referring to the dragonfly.

Crowbeak rolled his optics. "Couldn't we have sent someone a little more impressive, distraction-wise?"

"Zzzzip it. It worked perfectly…" she assured him, menacingly. The vulture glared at her. "Remember whossssse orderssss you're following, minion…"

He scowled. They remained silent for a few minutes.

"Quite an appropriate sssssetting, this," the cobra commented. Crowbeak boiled up inside at the sound of her voice. "After all, it is a ssssnake hole," she added with a toothy grin.

"Hardly the point," muttered Crowbeak, "besides, it's a swallow hole…"

"Sssssame differecccce."

"When do we move?" the vulture enquired, attempting to veer away from the subject that would drill a hole in his head.

"Not long. Jusssst asss sssssoon asss we hear from him."

"Yeah, yeah…can we rely on him?"

Serpentia rolled her slit eyes. "That'sss up to him. He doessssn't have much choicccce."

"Pteradonna to Serpentia." The green pterodactyl quietly called through her com-link from her lookout point.

"Have you heard from him yet?" she hissed back.

"Affirmative."

"Then let'sssss go." She opened up a communication link to all the Predacons in her group, "To your possssitionssss…"

--

Meanwhile, Stampede and Rhinox were trying to fight off the many aquatic predators emerging from holes in the ice, which was so thick and so deep, they couldn't see where they were. The Predacons had managed to lead them to relatively thin ice, and were popping up from al around them, and diving back down again.

Stampede had transformed into beast mode and was using her trunk to squeeze whatever she could catch. At one point she had Trawler, getting some payback, who wriggled in her grasp like a fish out of water. Little did she know her hind legs were close to a surfacing hole for Razorblade.

A hand emerged from the ice, grabbed the mammoth's left hind leg, and started to pull her under the water.

Stampede instantly let go of Trawler, who flopped onto the ground, panting for breath. The mammoth made all sorts of helpless cries as she tried to grope the top of the ice with her front legs while the rest of her sank into the ocean.

"Stampede!" Rhinox called, only just noticing this. The last he saw of her was her trunk slowly descending beyond his view past the ice.

Rhinox was so distracted, Rockjaw was able to throw him a punch that knocked him clean off his feet. She slammed her huge fists together threateningly. But before she could throw another, something behind her caught Rhinox's eye. Wondering what it was, she looked around too.

Stampede was back on the surface, her hair dripping wet resembling a very hairy waterfall. But she wasn't quite on the surface; she seemed to be bobbing just over it. And she was smiling.

"This is fightin' water with water. Now, hun!"

Rockjaw gaped as the mammoth went back under the water, and then seemed to jump out again effortlessly.

"What the..?"

The mammoth was riding the back of an enormous killer whale, who reared half its body above the ice. When Stampede jumped off, the orca made a high pitched squeal and landed its hulk on the ice. The ground cracked under the weight, and catapulted Rockjaw several feet into the air (Rhinox had to scramble away to stay on land). She landed face first into a patch of ice thicker than the rest, creating a depression where she fell.

Stampede transformed and walked over to the 'beached' orca. "I ever tell you how much you rule, Streamline?"

"Shucks, wasn't nuthin…" he replied, "Ow!" 'S'cuse me, somethin's bitin' my tail."

Stampede gave him a wink goodbye as he retreated back under the waves.

"Now there's service, right?" she said jollily to Rhinox, who smiled back.

"Yeah. And just in time too."

She nodded. "I don't mind the occasional swim, but these temperatures make my hair go all…poofy…" she joked, and the both laughed.

"I guess it explains where all the other Preds went," Rhinox commented. He looked around and saw more holes where their attackers must have dived or been pulled through.

They ran back towards the generator, where they saw Archtech had come back online.

"Why that little…"

But they saw that he wasn't pre-occupied with the generator, but a Maximal hidden behind it. It was Signia, the bottlenose dolphin.

"Sig!" Stampede cried, beginning to make her way towards her. But she stopped when Signia signalled them to keep back by waving her arms. She was using a powerful water jet to keep Archtech away from the generator and herself. It didn't damage him much, but he was kept well back by the force.

When he was far enough away, Signia made sure she was right between him and the generator, and faced his direction. She closed her optics and breathed in deeply.

"Wuh-oh…Rhinox, if you value your audio receptors, you'll cover 'em…" Stampede instructed.

"Wha…"

"Just do it!"

He complied, not sure why. But it quickly became apparent.

Signia opened her optics again, and 'sang' an ear-piercing, high-pitched, ultra-sonic note. It was deafening, and getting higher and higher. Archtech was wriggling because of the noise, clutching his head. Then Signia's arms opened up, it looked as if she were about to embrace him, but there were balls of yellowish energy forming in concentric rings in the palms of her hands. She clapped them together, and emitted a sonic boom that sent the penguin skimming across the ice like a pebble on a lake.

When Rhinox uncovered his audios, they were ringing slightly. Stampede was grinning broadly.

"Way to go, Fins!" she shouted louder than she intended, unaware she was temporarily deaf. She and Rhinox ran to meet her.

"Greetings my friend. It is good to see you are both well."

"I don't think we've met," Rhinox said very loudly, the ringing still in his ears, "my name is Rhinox."

"And I am Signia," she replied just as loudly so he could hear her, "Do not worry, you will have your full hearing back momentarily." Now that she spoke, he could just about hear her sing-song melodic voice and 'English' accent.

"The Preds ain't giving up," observed Stampede, watching Sky Scraper attacking Razorblade from the air, "What do we do?"

"They are indeed resilient, more so than usual," Signia replied. Rhinox lowered his head in thought, then had an idea.

"What if we led the Preds right to the power source? Let them know exactly where heart of the generator is?" he suggested. Stampede took several paces back, waving her hands.

"Woah, woah, what? Hey, you may be cute, but I know you can't expect me to go for that!"

"I must say, it does seem to defeat the purpose of this counterattack," said Signia in a mellow tone, "for what reason would you attempt this risky manoeuvre?"

Rhinox grinned. "Here's why…"

--

"I'm all done here!" bragged Trawler. He and the shark/wolf fuzor were underwater.

"How so?" Razorblade asked, unconvinced.

"Well, my Maximal is sinking like a stone, does that satisfy you?" he continued, watching Slapstix in stasis lock sinking beneath him.

"Eh, fine, whatever," she replied, "I'm nearly finished with this one…" She held Sky Scraper's face in her hand, giggling as his limbs attempted to break him free. He was not doing well underwater. "Imagine sending this idiot to…OOF!"

It didn't hurt her, but she felt something blunt stab her in the back. She let go of the albatross, who swam back up to the surface as fast as he could (though not very well). The angry fuzor looked behind and around her to see what did it. She spotted Trawler, and narrowed her optics.

"Don't look a me, I didn't do nothin'!" he protested at her suspicious gaze.

"Down here, my mismatched foe!"

Razor looked down to see Signia in robot mode, aiming a pistol at her. The dolphin fired, missing the fuzor's nose by an inch.

"Man, your aim sucks!" he Predacon mocked. Signia smiled from below her. She had actually aimed for Trawler, and hit his arm, but the shot was also intended to provoke the female.

"Perhaps yours is better…" The dolphin mocked. She transformed and swam quickly away. Razorblade snarled and followed.

Meanwhile, Snowhunter had dived past Trawler, swiping at him with his paws to get to Slapstix. He scooped the seal up and brought him back to the surface.

"Hey! That's **my** catch of the day!" Trawler bellowed. He, too, shot after the Maximal and followed him.

On the surface, Snowhunter, now in beast mode, threw the unconscious Slapstix over his shoulders and ran. Close behind him, Trawler shot out of the water and landed on the ice in robot mode, following the polar bear. It wasn't that threatening, for he looked quite the fool falling over himself so comically, but he did have a gun he knew how to use.

"I sure hope this works, Signia!" Snowhunter yelled through his com-link as he ran as fast as his paws would allow.

"As do I!" Signia replied, just as speedily trying to swim for her life. Razorblade had transformed into beast mode and was snapping her jaws at Signia's tailfin menacingly.

--

"Shouldn't we have heard from them right now?"

"I think they might be a little busy."

"But a status report wouldn't kill them, right?"

"No, but the Preds might!"

Sandskimmer and Accinon were at each other's throats with worry, causing grief for everyone else, thus magnifying their own concerns.

"Will you two knock it off?" yelled Bounder, "Accinon, don't be so negative…"

"Too right, mate!" Sandskimmer concurred approvingly.

"And YOU," the hare continued, pointing a finger at the jerboa, "stop being a pest!"

"Will you all shut up?" barked a femme bot, Sunset, whose beast mode was a brown and white husky, "We're not exactly helping anything or anyone by bursting each others' eardrums!"

The cavern was soon filled with arguing bots. Some said shut up to others who said they should be out there, while many said there was plenty of help in the southern sector.

Cheetor and Rattrap stood against a wall, optics wide. This was their first day, no, first **hour** at Pangaea Two. Although Cheetor did think that they should be out there helping Rhinox.

Rattrap sighed exasperatedly. "Did you not hear earlier? It's not just Rhinox out there now, kid. Like it or not, you're gonna have to get used to the fact that these bozos are our comrades, too. Get that through your fancy shmancy Transmetal noggin!"

"Since when were you so wise and all-knowing?" Cheetor asked dryly.

"When yeh been around a while and seen as much as I have, pussy cat, then yeh can ask me that. 'Kay?"

Just then, a stallion entered the base. He looked nervous, cowing the floor with his front hoof. He might have been distressed by seeing most of the base squabbling, but that wasn't it.

"Hello? Uh, guys? Kind of urgent, this, you might wanna listen! ……HEY!"

His bellow echoed through the cave, silencing the rest of the Maximals.

"What is it, Dragonstail?" Jagna asked from across the room.

"Uhh…" he cowed the floor again, digging a hole in the dirt. He shook his head nervously, his mane swinging from side to side. He was an almost-jet-black stallion with a chestnut mane and grey markings from his forehead to his nuzzle. "I think…I saw something, um, outside?" He didn't look like the nervous type at first glance, and judging by most of his comrades' reactions, he wasn't.

"Saw what?" someone in the small crowd asked. The voice came from a flying squirrel perched atop a ledge.

"Movement…" he answered, "I think there might be Preds about…"

As soon as he said it, Jagna ordered several scouts to go outside and check the perimeter.

"Are you sure, DT?" she asked him. He looked as if he wasn't going to answer her, but when he nodded, she continued to everyone else, "Right, you all know the drill, scanners on high etcetera. Misty," she addressed the small badger femme, "you Rattrap have a look around outside. I hear he's got a knack for scaring Predacons out of hiding." She smiled and winked at the rat. He looked puzzled, wondering who could have told her that. His eyes darted back and forth between Cheetor and Optimus, both of whom didn't see him.

"Weeell, I don't like to brag, but…"

"Then don't," she interrupted before getting her ear bent, "Just go."

He nodded and followed Misty, who greeted him with a warm and pleasant smile, back up through the tunnel complex. Jagna rubbed her temples and scowled. "I don't like this…" she murmured to no one in particular.

Lightwing, the squirrel that spoke up earlier explained to Optimus that their base was well hidden. Whenever Predacons got close, they had certain procedures to follow to make sure they didn't get discovered. The scouts would relay info back as to their location, and if need be, lead the Predacons away. She said she was a little confused though, because the usually sent only two scouts.

"If you ask me…" she whispered to the large gorilla. It was a good thing she was already high up, or she would have had to climb up to reach his audio receptors, "…the Preds are getting smarter. They ain't the brightest cookies, but they know their way around. I wouldn't be surprised if right now…"

She never got to finish her sentence, for through a loudspeaker connected to her com-link, Misty screamed, "We're under attack!!"

Shock swept through the Maximal base. The scouts had barely left the base when they were ambushed.

"Everyone to the tunnel! Make sure they don't get in!" Jagna yelled. There was a small amount of shoving and pushing while the Maximals scrambled to get to their posts and getting their weapons out. The leopard stayed at the back of the group to make sure everyone was ready. Cheetor was standing next to her.

"Won't they try and come through the second entrance?" Cheetor asked the Maximal leader, pointing towards it, as they were both standing in its doorway.

"No, they don't know about that…" she assured herself.

"Guessssss again…"

The two cats spun around to see Serpentia emerge from the crystal clear water of the underground spring. She was followed by Colossus, the black bear Cheetor was by no means pleased to see again, another bear, a grizzly this time, and one the other Predacon snake, Gearcrush. Cheetor certainly remembered him. He had never had much luck with snakes.

Since Jagna had ordered everyone to the main entrance to prevent the Predacons rushing in from there, that's where most of their backup was. She loudly cursed herself and her stupidity as the four intruders fired at her and Cheetor.

Sandskimmer, who was at the back of the crowd at the first entrance, pricked his ears when he thought he heard gunshots in the next chamber. He turned his head and saw the backs of the two cats and four Predacons.

"Crikey! We got some uninvited guests already in, mates!" he yelled at the top of his voice to whoever could hear him. Thinking there were plenty of bots at this entrance, he ran as quickly as possible to aid the other two at the second entrance. But his abnormally loud voice attracted a lot of attention, and the group's focus was distracted.

That's when the rest of the Predacons managed to get in.

As well as the four at the second entrance, five more came in, blasting their way through each wall of defence. Crowbeak led that attack, easily avoiding rounds from Misty's wrist guns, then ran into Rattrap, who he made quick work of. He grabbed the Transmetal by the collar plate and threw him down the swallow hole. The rat tumbled down the tunnel and landed at Sunset's feet.

Crowbeak followed Rattrap's bangs as he hit the walls of the tunnel down to the right chamber. He was then followed by three more flyers: Pteradonna, Khronus, and Fleeter, then by a fierce-looking cat with teeth that nearly touched the ground. When he sighted his first Maximals, he growled and licked his lips excitedly and yelled, "Sabergem, Terrorise!"

No one was quite sure what happened next. They Predacons were hardly outnumbered: it was nine against nine, not including Rattrap or Misty, who had already been 'dealt with'. They had thought this through very carefully: they had posted units over a certain period of time near where they suspected one of the Maximal bases were, and observed the patterns the Maximals followed to keep it hidden. For example, they knew that two scouts would be sent out…but they had one or two more tricks up their sleeves.

While Sandskimmer fought off the bears with Cheetor and Bounder, and Sunset attempted to subdue Crowbeak, and Jagna tried her best to keep Serpentia's blade from slicing her throat, and Optimus battled Gearcrush while simultaneously swatting Fleeter away from him, and Accinon pounced on Khronus and Lightwing fought off Pteradonna, and Dragonstail kept far away from Sabergem's claws and teeth, someone else was there…

Someone they couldn't see…

Rattrap came to, and smelt something funny…something familiar. He lifted his head and saw the battle taking place, but that was not what caught his attention. The picture in front of him looked distorted, like someone had placed a piece of very thick, rough piece of glass in front of his optics. Speaking of optics…

There! That's why he knew that smell. He briefly saw a pair of optics that didn't belong to any of the fighters, but seemed to float above the ground. The forest…when he was captured and taken to the Predacon base…

He tried to speak up and warn someone, but each Maximal was busy with their own Predacon. And he was still a little weak from the attack and the fall, that he went into stasis lock.

Most of the fighting took place in the main sections of the two main chambers, so no one paid any attention to the third chamber in the middle of them. Where all the eight consoles of Pangaea Two that contained all the information on the Maximals' activities were kept.

The shapes of the stone of the wall seemed warped in places. And then they would return t normal as another section of wall was distorted. Something…or someone seemed to be walking in front of them.

The distorting halted at the first console. Suddenly, a body appeared, the shape oozing out of nowhere as if paint had been poured onto an invisible statue.

A tall, thin femme bot stood where the distortion had been, and her optics glowed maliciously. She was covered in multi-coloured scales of bright, brilliant reds, yellows, greens and much more. Her beast mode was that of a chameleon, which is how she avoided detection. On the back of her helmet were goggles in the shape of a chameleon's eyes that she flicked down onto her face. They moved individually as they would have in beast mode, the left one scanning the equipment and the right one displaying the information for her. She grinned broadly at herself, and began work.

A few cycles later, Serpentia and Jagna pinned on the floor, using her long, strong tail to hold the leopard's right arm down while she held the left one down with her own left hand. She had swapped her long sword-like blade for a shorter dagger, the razor edge composed of an alloy of steel and energon. She was enjoying the look on the Maximal leader's face as she teased her with the blade, stroking it down the side of her face and across her neck.

She suddenly stopped when her on-board computer began to beep wildly. She scowled. She leaned in closer to Jagna's face and whispered, "We'll ffffinish thisss later…"

She threw the blade aside and gave the Maximal one final punch, knocking her out cold. She stood upright and scanned areas around her. As she searched for what she was looking for, she was delighted to see the progress here troops were making against the Maximals. They were faring incredibly well, in fact. But then she spotted the chameleon, and her spirits for the battle sank. The lizard femme nodded, then 'disappeared'.

Serpentia sighed, almost wishing this battle would go on longer. But orders were orders. She placed two fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. Once she had the troops' attention, she ordered them all out. There were several interjecting 'buts', but she reminded them all of their orders.

Almost as quickly as they had come, they left.

Once the last Predacon had gone, every Maximal collapsed from exhaustion. Even Optimus was shaken, Gearcrush was a strong brute, and Fleeter had managed to drain some of his energy. Pesky mosquito.

Cheetor rubbed his chest where one of the bears, he wasn't sure if it was Ugly or Uglier, had slashed at him. He went over to aid Bounder help a groggy Sandskimmer back onto his feet.

Several units were in stasis lock and had to be awoken. Among them were Rattrap, Misty (who had to be brought in from outside), Jagna and Lightwing.

Nobody said much to each other. They were all in shock, and were hoping beyond hope that what just happened…didn't happen.

Then bad news broke the silence.

"They…they've…they've accesses the main archives!" Sunset screamed. A few Maximals gathered around her in the third chamber. Yes. Pools of data previously hidden from public view were now visible on the main screen…and every single console had been tampered with.

Outside, the Predacons regrouped downstream from the river entrance to Pangaea Two. "Serpentia received several complaints from Predacons wanting to finish off their respected Maximal.

"We are here to ffffollow ordersssss, remember…" she elaborated for the fourth time, her patience thinning each time.

"We could've just taken the base! We were winning!" Crowbeak complained loudly and more animated than usual.

"What did I **jusssst** sssay?" Serpentia hissed venomously.

"Kahn is crazy to think that his plan couldn't have worked if we'd taken that base. He can shove his master scheme right up his…"

"AHEM!"

The voice came from nowhere. The band of Predacons looked around to see who it belonged to. Serpentia did not. She rolled her optics, unimpressed.

"Who speak?" Gearcrush demanded, getting frustrated, "Can't see!"

"Down here you big lugnut!"

The chameleon femme suddenly revealed herself. She smiled coldly up at the large boa constrictor, who was dumbstruck.

She walked past the two line of Predacons, all of whom were whispering to each other.

"Who the heck is she?"

"Where'd she come from?"

"What the slag's going on here?"

The femme stopped when she got to Serpentia. All eyes were now on the Predacon lieutenant and the newcomer.

"Well Camophlage?" the serpent hissed.

"Let me take this opportunity to say I told you so, Tia…" the femme bot Camophlage responded, grinning smugly.

"Yessss, yessss, you were right, whatever," Serpentia hissed, glaring at the chameleon, "what did you find?"

"Everything we needed."

--

Signia, Snowhunter (and Slapstix) and Sky Scraper were all being chased by at least one Predacon each.

Rhinox and Stampede were also running. They were headed away from the main generator and were following one of the pipelines that connected the generator to the geysers.

"I sure hope this works…" Rhinox said as they ran.

"Stop saying that!" Stampede replied, breathlessly.

"There they are!" Rhinox pointed to several small figures of transformers – he couldn't tell if they were maximal or Predacon just yet – but they were close.

"There's the geyser!" Stampede pointed to a large hole in the ground, when there was solid rock visible where the ice was constantly being melted away.

"Head for it!" Rhinox instructed loudly.

Once all the Maximals were close enough to each other, the separated again. All the noise and commotion finally awoke Slapstix, who barked in surprise at what was going on.

"Have I missed something?!" he asked Snowhunter, whose shoulders he was still on.

"Just follow our lead!" the polar bear told him.

"Say what? WAGH!" He was tossed into the air, so he transformed, landed and ran in circles, though he didn't know why.

The Predacons were confused as t why their prey were running back towards them they decided they would go with it and catch them once they were close enough.

"They wanna play huh? Great! Come to papa!" Trawler yelled obnoxiously, tripping over himself a few more times.

To their surprise, however, the Maximals ran straight past them without slowing down. Once past them, the Maximals all transformed and started firing at them. From the air, Sky Scraper could see the plan was working. The Maximals now had their enemies surrounded.

Just a few more meters…he willed.

The Predacons were in place.

"Now, Signia!"

The dolphin nodded, and every other Maximal ran as fast as they could to the side and ducked behind several large glacial boulders. The Predacons didn't have time to figure out what was going on, and when they saw Signia, nor could they prepare themselves for her attack this time, for she was instructed to skip the disorienting screeching and go straight for her sonic boom.

Razorblade slumped when she finally noticed Signia open her arms.

"Slag…"

Clap.

BOOM!

The group of Predacons was thrown back beyond the glaciers to the north. Signia fell to her knees, exhausted. Rhinox had given her a personal boost from the energy converter by the largest geyser in the area, but she had never emitted a sonic boom without 'warming up' first. Snowhunter went straight to her to help her up. The rest of the Maximals followed him to congratulate her.

"Alright Sig!"

"Way to go Fins!"

"Boom, baby!"

The poor mammal was nearly knocked off her feet by the pats on her shoulder.

Stampede gave Rhinox a whack on the back as well, nearly knocking him flat.

"Nice one, hun," she gave him a very smiley wink, and he chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. Stampede then opened up a com channel to the swallow hole base. "Everything is fine now, P Two," she said happily, smiling at everyone standing around her, who smiled back, "How's things at your end?"

"Dire…" Sunset's exhausted and disgruntled voice replied, "…We have a major problem…"

--

"So it was a trap? A distraction?"

"Well, of course it was a trap. Anyone could've…" Dragonstail bawled, but he was interrupted by a sharp elbow in the stomach. Jagna was standing close by, arms folded, shoulders tense, looking very angry with herself. He blushed, and turned his head away, hoping she hadn't heard him.

Skylark had been called from her field position close by to inspect any damage the Predacon invasion party had reaped. As there was little physical damage (that worried her, anyway), the owl technician turned her attention to the data banks from the base's console.

All the Maximals watched her with baited breath. When she got to the final console, the owl stopped dead. She quickly withdrew and put on her 'glasses', then connected herself to the console's motherboard via a cable she pulled out from her chest plate under the head of her beast mode. Streams of data codes appeared on her glasses in front of her optics. She shook her head hopelessly, mouth agape.

The room went very still.

"Sky?..." Jagna asked, slowly and tentatively.

The owl very slowly looked up from the console. "They've made a copy of everything on our main databanks…" she began awkwardly.

"Everything?" Jagna asked breathlessly.

"Well, not quite everything. Only the info that wasn't encrypted." The femme tech shook her head, removed her glasses and rubbed her optics. The data she was speaking of, the data that was not encrypted, the data the Predacons managed to acquire, contained information about of Pangaea Two's whereabouts underground…and the secret location of Pangaea One.

Jagna let out a loud roar, burying her had in her hands. All the Maximals in the room shifted uncomfortably, muttering to each other. Several, 'What now's and 'We're sitting ducks' were thrown about, causing the Maximal leader deeper frustration. Optimus understood what it felt like to know the safety of one's crew was compromised. He slowly went up to the leopard and put a hand, or rather a finger, on her shoulder. She didn't shake him off like he thought she might.

"Now what? They know we have more than one base…and they know where they are now! I'm such an idiot!" Her voice was muffled through her hands. Optimus put some pressure on her shoulder to get her to listen to him.

"You can't focus on that right now," he stated firmly and assuredly, shifting himself to face her, "Now that they know about both your bases, you need to focus less on concealing them and more on defending them."

She took her head out of her hands and looked at him. She sighed deeply, scrunching her optics in frustration. Then she looked behind her. Her Maximals, Cheetor and Rattrap included, were all staring at her for what to do next. She looked back at Optimus, who raised his brow ridge. She nodded, pulled herself together and straightened up. She turned to Skylark.

"Deploy Codename Safeguard. Alert everyone at Pangaea One, make sure everyone's prepared." She turned to address everyone else. All those optics continued to gaze at her, some unsure, some scared, some a little annoyed. She shrugged. "Well…we knew it would happen some day. Everyone prepare themselves for your Safeguard posts. It looks like we…really are at war now…" She gazed sadly at all of them, and went over to Skylark to discuss how they would proceed with Safeguard.

Optimus, Cheetor and Rattrap were actually familiar with Codename Safeguard. Over the last few weeks they had been informed of all the safety procedures, regulations, duty timings etc. of the Maximal crew. They knew almost as much now as the 'locals' did, give or take a few technicalities. They had only recently learned of Safeguard from Skylark, and judging her presentation of her explanation, every Maximal on Earth hoped it would not have to come to that.

Skylark and Jagna were talking very quietly to each other.

"We can't get distracted like that again…Primus knows what could have happened if…"

"I know, Jag, I know," Skylark patted her friend's arm. She looked around her to check no one else was listening in, and leant in closer, "He's obviously getting more…you know…" She raised a brow suggestively.

"I know…" the leader whispered back. She shuddered slightly, causing Skylark to do the same.

"We're going to have to face it sometime…we might have to…" the owl femme whispered even more quietly. Jagna shook her head.

"I don't want to risk it."

"But…"

"No, Sky. Not yet."

"But we don't know how much longer it will before…Before he's…operational. Jag, I…I can't go through that again. Neither can Grey, neither can you…"

"I know!" Jagna shouted, turning a few heads. She bit her fist, waiting for the stares to be averted from them. She and Skylark were both breathing very heavily. "Let's just pray for…a little more time…"


	8. Confrontations

Disclaimer: Beast Wars and all its characters belong to Hasbro. However, all original characters and plots belong to me.

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 8:** CONFRONTATIONS

In a dark back street on the outskirts of Cybertropolis, a large red figure was darting between hiding places. The only thing apart from its size that would have given its location away was the flashing yellow optics.

He was not alone. He was in beast mode, but did not fly for fear of being spotted. He constantly thrashed his dragon head and tail behind him, even though somehow he knew the assailant wasn't there. But he was somewhere.

He reached an empty allotment, sheltered by a broken-down, unused bridge. He finally stopped running.

"Megatron, Terrorise!"

The ferocious red dragon transformed into the large, threatening red Predacon. He bared his teeth, breathless and livid.

"Show yourself!" the furious Predacon leader demanded. A strange voice answered him.

"Oh be quiet, you cheap knock-off. You are in no current position to make such demands." The voice was hoarse, gloating and… coming from his own mouth.

"Wha…?" Megatron stuttered, astounded. His optics began to flash yellow again when he turned his head and the other voice spoke.

"Oh please, don't tell me you haven't noticed me floating about in your obsessively occupied mind…"

Megatron thought…he knew he was never alone in that cell, but now that he had space and momentum to think about it, he knew right away.

"So…am I so honoured to have you share intelligent conversation with…Megatron?"

"Don't flatter yourself Halfling. From what I have seen of your race, you are nowhere near the standards the Decepticons are…"

"Were," the second Megatron corrected, "if you were that riddled with intellect, you would have realised we are somewhat ahead of your time…"

"I meant what I said," whispered the original Megatron, "the Decepticons will always be the greatest force Cybertron ever saw!"

"Mhm. So tell me, my belated genetic superior," the dragon mech sung sarcastically, "why come out now and not before?"

"Do you really think I would reveal my existence to the Autobots?" the original Megatron replied.

"There are hardly any Autobots left on Cybertron, only Maximals." Megatron II explained, shaking his head.

"Yes, I thought that was a bit strange. It seems I've got a bit ahead of myself. From what I've manage to access from your core memory…"

"You've done what?" bellowed Megatron II, enraged.

"Hush! I got you out of that tin can, and I can get you recaptured just as easily. And don't try to blame me, no one will believe you, for I gather the entire planet thinks that I am…"

"Dead, extinct…defeated…" the second Megatron interrupted darkly, "It is obvious that my purpose was to complete what you failed to accomplish. Conquest of Cybertron!"

"Yes, yes, I know. And it is laughable to think that a second-rate rip-off artist like yourself could ever compare to the original Megatron. You have my name, granted…but you have no army to that name. At least, not any more." He was referring to the fact that the second Megatron returned to Cybertron strapped to the back of an Autobot shuttle…and alone.

"Yes, very drole. But you really think I haven't planned ahead?"

"That's exactly what I think." Megatron answered.

"Shut up. But I found your message on the Golden Disk before I even left Cybertron."

"Oh?" the original tyrant enquired, his curiosity peaking.

"Ah, I see the snag you have run into, my old namesake. You only have access to my recent memories for some reason." The old Megatron huffed inside the new dragon Meg's head. "That is how I recruited my highest ranking troops in the first place. Unfortunate that only a few stayed loyal to me. And then, as you rightly know…"

"The drones just followed the flock." both Megatrons said together, laughing.

"You have yet to tell me how you got to be within my body, nor why you helped me escape," the second Megatron observed.

"Helped? I'm the one who orchestrated the whole thing. Your arms and legs were just there for my convenience. As for that shenanigan you attempted involving my spark…" Megatron II shifted a little uncomfortably, "we formed some sort of celestial bond in limbo of the Matrix continuum. Oh, and speaking of which: You have my spark!"

"What?!"

The original Megatron smiled using his descendant's face, "And you call yourself a Megatron. When your Optimus attempted to reunite my spark with my body – yes, I was aware the entire time – he made a grave mistake. Your spark is now in **my** body back on Earth. I want it back."

"Impossible," Megatron II said defiantly, "then how am I still here in my own body?"

"That is complicated…" the Decepticon replied slowly.

"You don't know, do you?"

"No. Care to make something of it, child?"

"Not now, no. Did you have any plans beyond this point of the escape?" the 'young one' asked.

"I roamed this planet several hundred stellar cycles ago. It has changed somewhat," the other replied, irritated.

_Ah yes, of course…the Great War hasn't started to him…_

"I have connections. Old friends, if you will, dedicated to the Predacon cause. Let us pay them a visit. This 'bond' of which you speak could yet prove beneficial to both of us. Yesss…"

--

Back on Earth, the still dazed Maximals at Pangaea Two were trying to fathom what happened the previous day.

"How did they get to the info banks? We kept an eye on every single Predacon there." Bounder complained, having just exited the CR Chamber to fix his crushed shoulder.

"Not everyone…" Skylark interrupted slowly. The owl had remained at that base to make sure there was no unseen damage to the data banks.

"Say what?"

"Well, look at the security hologram," she brought it up and displayed it to everyone who was in the third chamber (namely Bounder, Jagna, Rattrap, Lightwing and Sunset), "look in that corner…" She pointed at the edge of the hologram. Everyone squinted, and gasped. Out of nowhere, a femme bot appeared where they thought was just air.

"Who the heck is that?" Lightwing asked, picking up her jaw.

"I have no idea, I don't recognise her," Skylark replied, zooming in on the femme bot's face, "She's not listed in any of our files…I think she might be new."

"Impossible!" said Sunset brashly, "We'd know about it, wouldn't we?"

Skylark shook her head, "Not if I know Kahn. He's unusually good at keeping things hush-hush."

"Besides, I've met her before…" stated Rattrap. He described the scenario he experienced with this mystery femme when he, Cheetor, Nightshaft and Sandskimmer were ambushed in the forest nearly a decacycle ago.

Jagna shook her head, still bitter with herself, "So that's one more Predacon to worry about…"

"Worry about? Who did we have to worry about in the first place?" Lightwing asked, starting to get panicky. Skylark caught Jagna's eye, and drew her finger across her throat. The leopard was about to answer with an, 'Uh…', when Sunset barked at the squirrel.

"Duh, the entire Predacon force, maybe?"

"I was just asking…" Lightwing whimpered defensively. Sunset was actually rather unpleasant a lot of the time, and very demanding and bossy.

"Ease off, Sunset," Skylark said, rolling her optics, "the last thing we need is your attitude upsetting everyone further."

"Oh really?" the husky protested, "Well then…"

"That's enough!" hissed Jagna, rubbing her forehead, "Get out please, Sunset."

"What? But…"

"Out!"

The canine femme stood staring for a second, open mouthed, then stormed out of the chamber in a huff.

"She seems a bit like Accinon…" Rattrap whispered quietly to Bounder.

"Nah…she's worse…" the hare replied, shuddering.

Jagna was taking deep breaths, obviously trying not to explode. Sunset almost never listened, nor did she seem to care about others' feelings.

"So what do we do now?" Lightwing asked.

"We've informed Pangaea One, Base Three and all field units of the situation," Skylark answered for Jagna, "we don't know just yet, but we'll figure something out…" She tried to catch the leopard's eye again, but she turned away and left too.

"Better leave her," the owl said quickly as Bounder began to follow his leader. She nodded at him to confirm that all she needed was time to forgive herself. However, she didn't mention it might take a while.

Just then, Accinon came in with something for Skylark. She found it in that chamber earlier and had taken it to the main console for analysis.

"I think it might belong to the Preds, but I can't tell which one…" The other Maximals explained to her about the mystery femme and showed her the footage. "Ah. Well, it's probably hers then. But the computer can't give me a detailed enough analysis, so I figured you might be able to, Sky."

Despite the severity of the situation, the owl took what Accinon handed her with eagerness. It looked like a shell casing from a small handheld device.

"I'll meet Rhinox at the Hercules. Perhaps the equipment he has there will help us out a little more."

"Can I come too?" Lightwing asked just as eagerly, "I haven't seen their ship yet."

"Not many of us have yet." Accinon answered, giving Rattrap a funny look. He held up his hands defensively.

"Don't look at me, it ain't **my** hunk-o-junk!"

"Ah, don't worry guys. I heard we might all be on it someday: exploring the galaxy or whatever," commented Bounder. Skylark coughed uncomfortably, pretending not to hear him.

"Sure, you can come Light. Just don't touch anything without asking. He doesn't seem to like that…" She looked at Rattrap, who nodded and chuckled.

"Cool, thanks!" They both smiled and left.

"What was Jag on about?" Bounder asked mostly himself.

"Eh, probably nuttin'. C'mon, let's see if the others are out o' the CR Chambers yet," said Rattrap.

He, Bounder and Accinon went back into the main chamber.

--

Meanwhile, in the Predacon base, the so-called 'new' Predacon Camophlage was standing in Kahn's chambers, closely watched by Serpentia and Obertron, who were both sneering at her with disapproving dislike. Outside, Darkwing, Webneck and Pteradonna were leaning against the door, listening in, while a few of the others waited next to them.

"Serpentia tells me…" wheezed Kahn, who was, as always, floating in his life-support tube of glowing yellow liquid, "…that your…mission was suc…cessful…"

"But of course," the chameleon gloated, "I'm just relieved you didn't entrust it to these bozos." She jabbed her thumb towards the two units behind her, whose scowls deepened. "Imagine the calamity!"

"Yes, well, it's been lovely having you here, bye now!" Obertron wailed loudly, gesturing to the door.

"One…moment…fuzor…" Kahn interrupted, "If my guess…is correct…we could…use your assistance…once more…" he added to Camophlage.

She folded her arms and shifted her weight onto one leg. "For you…double or nothing of the best you got," she stated firmly.

"Shhhall I disssspossse of her for her insssssolencccce?" Serpentia hissed, drawing her sword and placing the blade across Camophlage's chest.

Kahn considered it, but he begrudgingly agreed to the chameleon's terms.

"Here is what I want…you to do…"

--

In a very mountainous area, a pack of wolves was roaming a large, grassy plain next to an evergreen pine forest.

One wolf, however, strayed away from its pack. It had different colouring: most of the wolves had white, brown and black fur, but this one was grey.

He made his way up to the top of a rocky outcrop and scanned the area.

"Come on, guys…" the Maximal muttered. Then he spotted a creature that was very out-of-place in this northern forest. It was looking for something.

"Jag! JAG!" Greyback called from his rocky outlook post. The leopard finally spotted the grey wolf and leapt up onto the ledge to meet him. He noticed she was alone, "Sky with you?"

She shook her head, "She was with Rhinox last I checked." They both chuckled slightly, wondering if she was staying for the science after all.

Just then, a large tawny owl swooped in and landed just behind them.

"Sorry I'm late," Skylark apologised, "I got kind of distracted…what are you smiling at?" The other two shook their heads.

"Sorry for dragging you both out here," Greyback explained, "I just thought we should talk away from the others…for now."

The leopard and the owl nodded in agreement. He continued.

"Let's get right down to it…"

--

Back on Cybertron, Silverbolt was still getting over his…he didn't know what to call it…Pred-attack. It had been a few hours since he and Blackarachnia left the warehouse. They didn't go far, only to meet another bot in another warehouse to do a second check on them. They were informed to await confirmation.

"On what?" Blackarachnia had asked.

"Confirmation," the bot repeated every time she asked before he threw them out.

Now there were sitting in their make-shift home: an apartment of sorts given to them by the Council. Blackarachnia pointed out that A) they would probably not be staying in one place for too long, and B) they could not stay in a Maximal-owned state apartment if they were to be Predacons spies.

Silverbolt was getting bored. That wasn't a frequent occurrence, and he did not enjoy it. Blackarachnia was leaning on a high table, going through some files.

Silverbolt's optics slowly wandered over to her and she was facing away from him. He smiled and made his way over to his poison widow.

She didn't flinch at the touch of his hand on her back. In fact, she didn't move at all. _Let him do the work_, she thought with a grin.

"Okay then, my love, let's play." He grabbed her hip and swung her round to face him, making her drop her files. She smiled as he pulled her closer to him. Their aces were an inch away when…

A deafening ringing rang through the room.

"Ah!"

They covered their audios, silently cursing their 'telephone'.

"That's awfully loud!" Silverbolt roared over the noise.

"I know you're a hound, just answer it!" Blackarachnia shouted back.

Silverbolt pressed the answer button on the wall panel not far from them. "This is Silverbolt reporting," he announced formally.

"This is Ultra Magnus speaking," the tanker replied through the com link.

"Got something for us, Big M?" Blackarachnia asked.

"Terrible news, I'm afraid. Have you infiltrated the Tripredicous Council yet?"

"Sheesh, give us a break, big guy, it's gonna take more than a few days to…" Blackarachnia began, but Ultra Magnus cut her off.

"You're going to have to do it quick, or we scrap the whole project." Ultra Magnus announced.

"But sir, why?" Silverbolt asked, "We believe we have a good chance…"

"Megatron has escaped." Ultra Magnus interrupted blatantly.

The two Maximals stood staring at the wall panel, mouths agape, optics larger than dinner plates.

"You still there?"

"Yes sir…" Silverbolt replied abruptly, snapping out of his stunned trance.

"How?" Blackarachnia asked simply.

"Were not sure yet," Magnus replied, "I'm still on my way there, Diamond Nine and Claymor are still working the scene. Apparently, he was working alone."

"But you don't believe that, do you?" the spider asked.

"I don't know that yet, either, but I'll figure out soon enough. I just wanted to inform you in case Megatron tries anything with the Tripredicous Council."

"I don't think he will, chief. They did try to kill him," the widow pointed out.

"And yet, there are still Predacons with opposing views on the Predacon cause, of course," Silverbolt continued. Ultra Magnus huffed through the radio.

"If you still think you can pull it off, go ahead with the operation. Just be careful. Ultra Magnus out."

The radio went silent. Silverbolt and Blackarachnia looked at each other.

"Well slag…"

--

Meanwhile, back on Earth…

Streakhorn, the Maximal gazelle femme, was waiting in a cave about 30 klicks from the mountain base. A swan suddenly swooped in from the sky, and transformed into robot mode Sleek.

Streakhorn looked her up and down, feigning surprise.

"Heeeey, you're not whose supposed to be taking over my patrol…"

Sleek smiled, "I filled in for Spanner, so I'm here to switch shifts with you…"

"Uh-huh." The two winked at each other, pleased they had arranged this beforehand.

"Anything to get away from Cheetor, I just can't shake him," the swan complained, "following me around, ugh, he's like a child!"

"Isn't he at P Two?"

"Yeah, but he's due back soon, and then it begins again."

"Must be your animal magnetism," Streakhorn joked. Then her smile faded slightly, "You've always had they guys after you…"

Sleek smiled jokily as well, "Jealous much?"

"Oh, please…" the gazelle clutched her left arm, "…okay, a little…"

"Well look, you have absolutely nothing to worry about," Sleek assured her, moving closer to her. Streakhorn looked awkwardly at the floor as the swan got even closer.

"You're the only one for me…"

Sleek lifted the gazelle's chin with her fingers, and brought their lips together.

After a few moments, Streakhorn pulled away.

"What's wrong?" Sleek asked.

"I'm sick of hiding. I mean, look at us, we're in a cave, a hole!" She raised her arms to emphasise her point, "Put a door on the entrance and we'll have created a whole new meaning to…"

"Babe, calm down," Sleek went over to her partner and took her hand in hers, "just give it time. One day we'll be ready."

She gave her another quick peck, which Streakhorn only reluctantly accepted.

"We…or you?" the gazelle harshly asked. She turned away, transformed into beast mode and leapt out of the cave, leaving Sleek alone and winded.

--

The gazelle galloped down the mountainside and towards her shortcut back to base, muttering irritably to herself. She crossed a grassy plain and was headed towards a wall of rocks when he heard voices. She stood as still as she could, raising her ears up and down, as her instincts instructed her. They could be Predacons…She edged closer to a particularly large boulder, her hooves barely touching the ground. As she drew closer, the voices grew louder, and more familiar. She detected no Predacon signatures in the area, so he was relieved to discover they were friendlies. She was about to go behind the boulder and greet whoever it was, but the topic of conversation she was about to overhear stopped her.

"He's definitely getting stronger, he never would have risked something like that before."

That was Greyback's voice.

"We can't be sure of that…"

Skylark.

"Well, we can never be too sure with him, now can we?"

And Jagna. Streakhorn stayed behind the rock, curious as to what they were talking about.

"This new bot is bigger trouble than we thought. Not only did Kahn attack P Two, but he allowed her existence to be revealed. He's obviously trying out some new cloaking technology." Greyback grumbled, shaking his head.

"Hardly new though, is it?" replied Jagna, "I mean, who knows how long this femme has been operating under his command? Could be a few days, years, maybe even decades."

"I think it may be her," Skylark commented. The other two looked inquiringly at her, "Kahn's smart, but he's hardly got personal shielding down just yet. Rhinox and I were having a look at that casing Accinon found. I haven't told him yet, but I'd cautiously assume it's part of her own armour."

"So, he's not using advanced technology…he's using advanced bots?" Jagna asked.

"Just the one…I hope…" Greyback murmured uneasily. Skylark shook her head.

"Not necessarily advanced, just gifted. There are a few bots here who have unique abilities, aren't there? Cheetor is the only one who can travel beyond Mach Two, Signia can emit a localised sonic boom. Perhaps this Pred is another one to add to the list."

Jagna nodded, in deep thought. "Perhaps. Still doesn't explain why she decides to pop up now. Kahn's more careful than that. Unless…" she began, not wanting to finish her own sentence.

"Unless he's close…" Greyback finished for her. Skylark gasped with a squawk and Jagna bit her fist. The wolf mech scowled. "We need to know. Now."

"How? We're not exactly in any position to find out Grey," Skylark stammered.

"The new Predacon. We have to find her." Jagna stated. Skylark and Greyback looked at her, not saying a word. Streakhorn's beady black eyes widened. Grey sighed deeply.

"I suppose that's it then. We're going to have to find her, and get her to talk."

--

Later, Streakhorn returned to Pangaea One very confused. Not only about what she heard Grey and the others talking about, but about Sleek. When would she make up her mind? Would she ever?

"Something up Legs?" Nightshaft enquired, observing the gazelle's slumped posture and puzzled expression.

"Hunh?" Streakhorn looked distractedly towards the spider monkey, "Um…ask me later."

Nightshaft tilted her head. The gazelle was not often like this, nor was she going to let it go. "You'll feel better when you get it off your chest. Come on, tell."

"Well," Streakhorn replied, unsure whether she should tell anyone at all, "I kinda overheard something…"

"Something what?"

"Uh…y'know what, it's late, I should probably get to my monitoring duties." She turned around to head for the main chamber, but her path was blocked by Shellshock.

"Got something juicy, Legs?" the tortoise asked with a grin, "Come on, kiss and tell."

Streakhorn looked hopelessly between the two, who had sandwiched and trapped her, both grinning maliciously. She caved.

"Fine. I walked in on Grey, Sky and Jag talkin' about Kahn," Shell and Night stared inquisitively at her, "They're going after the Predacon that stole the info from P Two…"

"They what?!" Nightshaft burst out, "Are the insane? How could they not tell us?!"

"Easy, Night…" Shellshock warned, moving away from Streakhorn and putting a hand on his friend's shoulder, "…They probably have a valid reason for…"

The blue/black femme shot him a nasty look, shutting him up. She breathed in deeply, taking the situation a little personally. "Tell everyone to try and contact and locate them."

"Night, I don't think we should pry or anything, and we'll need some sort of clearance to…" Streakhorn began before being cut off.

"Clearance nothing. Our leader, our lieutenant AND our tech head aren't here. And I happen to be the next in the chain of command. So let's get to it, 'kay?"

Shellshock and Streakhorn look at each other, shrugged, and headed for the consoles in the main chamber of Pangaea One.

After a few minutes when everyone else in the base had been informed, the three Maximals were being tracked. To no avail, which puzzled many of the base units.

"Nah, it don't surprise me," Spanner commented, a little smugly, "Skylark has a knack for hiding things she doesn't want anyone to find. But don't worry. Gimme a few megacycles and them things'll be found." He cracked his knuckles and 'worked his magic'.

"Alright, I guess we'll have to wait that long." Nightshaft turned away and huffed. Greyback, she could understand, but why would Jagna and Skylark keep her out of this where she was usually kept in the loop? While she considered finding them herself, she begrudgingly accepted that this had little to nothing to do with her. But she still wanted to know.

They all waited for any kind of word, having sent a message to Pangaea Two.

--

At Pangaea Two, everyone was murmuring to one another about the message they had just received from their big sister base.

"What could they be doing?"

"Why didn't they tell anyone?"

"I could've helped, why didn't they at least tell me?!"

All sorts of questions and theories were flying about as to what the high-ranking wayward trio could be up to, as they hadn't been given the full story. Theories were as simple as a get-together to reminisce, and as absurd as starting their own tribe of chipmunk warriors…(Sandskimmer had not slept since the attack).

In a quiet corner of the lake entrance chamber, Rattrap and Cheetor mused over where they could be going. They, like many of the others theorised an attack on the Pred base, but with just three of them, they had two chances: fat and slim.

"Unless they plan to infiltrate," Cheetor suggested, "Grey seems to be an OK tactician, and Skylark's got enough brains to figure out how to keep the Preds busy with a few gadgets,"

Rattrap mumbled. Truthfully, he wasn't really concentrating on what they were talking about, and the only reason he was still in the conversation was because the situation reminded him of a documentary he saw on Cybertron before they came back.

"Yo! Ratface!" Cheetor was waving his hand an inch in front of the rat's empty expression.

"Eh, sorry kid, yeh must've been borin' me…" Rattrap apologised distractedly, snapping out of his daydream of returning to Cybertron…again…

"It could actually work…" the cat said eagerly.

"What could?"

"An assault on the Pred base! You said it was in Sector 12, right? What if Tarantulas' old spider holes are still there?"

Rattrap thought. That was a fair point, but…

"That's how Night and I got out, so I'm kinda guessin' the Preds've picked up on that, Spots."

"Yeah but…do you remember…that time I, uh…ahem…you know…" He spoke as quietly as he could, looking down at his feet while he did.

"Y'mean the time you went awol, ran off to the lava pits and nearly got yerself eaten and almost got me killed?...Nope. Ain't ringin' any bells…" the rat replied satirically. But then Cheetor reminded him that that entrance only appeared o be sealed off at the time, and maybe the rocks had dislodged themselves.

Rattrap was starting to see where the youngster was going with this. "Yeah, that's a point. I don't think anyone else found out about it…"

"Really? I've never heard this story…" Optimus was standing near then with his arms folded, drumming his fingers.

Cheetor and Rattrap immediately shut themselves up, looking at each other with blank expressions. How long he had been there, they did not know.

"Uuuhhhh…."

"Care to explain, either of you?" the optimal gorilla asked, bending down to their level, smiling slyly.

"Not really," Cheetor replied, turning his head as far away as possible to avoid eye contact of any kind.

"Rattrap?" Optimus bore into Rattrap's optics with his own.

"It's, uh…" the rat began slowly, trying to catch the cat's eye, which was impossible as he was 'conveniently' facing the other way, "…it's…not my place…to…tell…" he continued, laughing nervously. Optimus raised a brow ridge.

Cheetor sighed deeply, turned his head back to face Optimus, and painfully recounted that day's events when he blatantly disobeyed direct orders when Rattrap came to his aid…and never spoke of again.

When he had finished, both he and Rattrap had dropped their heads onto their chests, swapping glances saying, 'You're in more trouble,' and 'Don't try to pin this on me,' while Optimus shook his head disappointedly at the two of them. But he concentrated more on what he overheard them saying about secret passageways into Tarantulas' old lair.

"Hm. Where's Jagna? Or Greyback?"

"You're not much of a gossip, are yeh, Fearless Leader?"

"What about Skylark?" Optimus asked, shaking that last comment off.

"She was at the Hercules with Rhinox earlier," Cheetor answered with a suggestive grin.

"Okay then." Optimus turned to leave, and the other two sighed. But he turned around again, "Oh, and we'll talk about this later."

--

It had been 40 cycles since Streakhorn had unknowingly dropped in on their conversation. The trio of Maximals in search of a new enemy had hit a snag, that was obvious from the start…where to start? They ended up deep in the forest by the plains somehow, but couldn't think where to go next.

"Did we stop to think she might be a little hard to find?" Greyback snapped, frustrated after over half a megacycle or clueless searching.

"For pity's sake, Greyback…" Skylark said exasperatedly.

"Just…" Greyback attempted to keep a hold of himself, "Huh. Whatever."

"When you two are quite finished," Jagna interrupted, "Let's get going, shall we?"

"And do what?" Greyback barked, slowly creeping into one of his moods, "How are we supposed to find someone we can't see?"

"This was your idea, Grey," Skylark replied.

"Nu-uh! It was hers!" He pointed accusingly at Jagna, who raised her arms defensively

"Hang on just a minute, who called this meeting?"

"Guys!" Skylark yelled, "Come on, let's just think. If I were an invisible bad guy, where would I hide?"

They stared blankly at each other.

"Slag, this is stupid. We didn't think this through properly," Jagna started, annoyed.

"You think?!"

"I'm having serious déjà vu, Grey," she replied coolly to his outburst.

"Perhaps we should split up," Skylark suggested, growing uneasy, "We'll cover more ground that way."

Greyback laughed. "Two things wrong with that, Sky. One: there's only three of us, and two: she's invisible!"

"Yes, I know, you've said that **five times**!" the owl retorted.

"It seems I have to in order for it to sink in with you two!" Greyback was starting to lose it. Jagna was about to tell him to calm down, but Skylark jumped in before she could open her mouth.

"No slag!" the owl yelled uncharacteristically. She was very uncomfortable with their situation, and Greyback's attitude was not helping her nerves one bit. "Hey, here's an idea: fin her yourself!" And at that, she spread her wings and stormed off through the trees.

"Hey, don't you fly away from me!" he hollered after the owl, following her into the rest of the forest.

Jagna shook her head at the backs of her comrades. While she waited for them to cool off and sort things out, she stood still and listened. For anything.

She thought she heard a twig snap. She quickly turned around and whipped out her claws. But she couldn't see anything. She hoped it was an animal. She scanned the canopy of the trees. The jungle was her sanctuary, but lately it had been the perfect place for a…

…trap.

Something grabbed her throat. Something hard and cold. It took her completely by surprise, for she heard nothing after the snapping twig. She tried to pry what she guessed was a hand from her neck. She felt it, and it was a strong grip, but when she tried to move her head, she couldn't see it.

_What?_

The hand adjusted its grip of her, and forced her to turn around. The leopard femme found herself dangling three feet off the floor, held by an unseen force.

A pair of red optics suddenly appeared just below her eye level.

"Hello, sweetie…"

Elsewhere, Skylark was hovering above the ground with her arms folded.

"Sky! Where are you?" she heard Greyback call. She did not answer.

He found her a few moments later.

"What's your problem?" he asked her, panting.

"bMy/b problem? You're not making this easy for any of us, Grey," she replied.

"Wha…?" he stammered. Then he took a closer look at his old friend. He hadn't seen her distressed in a long time, so had forgotten how she got when she was. He sighed. "I'm sorry, Sky…" he began awkwardly, "You're right, this isn't making things any easier…"

She turned towards him. She sighed. "It's OK. You're just lucky I like you so much," she added with a smile.

"Well…" he began, putting on an exaggerated smug expression.

Suddenly, in the distance, they heard what sounded like a fusion of a scream and a roar. They looked at each other, wide-eyed.

"Jag…"

They had left her alone.

"Oh scrap…"

Skylark immediately zoomed away, leaving Greyback to straggle behind her on foot. She arrived where they last left their leader, who was no longer there.

"Jag?" she called, zigzagging through the trees, pushing away the lianas that blocked her path 20 meters in the air.

"Peek-a-boo!"

"What? AHH!"

She felt a hand clamp around her wrist and twist her arm behind her back. It threw her off balance, but instead of just staggering a few feet in the air, the hand remained around her wrist, and consequently, the rest of her body twisted itself to be at the same angle of her arm. She flipped upside-down, and that's when the hand let go. She began to fall, but she got herself tangles amongst the lianas, and ended up…swinging from the vines.

Below her, she saw something large crawling slowly up a tree. The shape was blurred, in fact, it was almost as if it wasn't there at all. Skylark squinted to focus on the object. Her hand automatically reached for her 'glasses', but her hand was caught. She didn't notice as she struggled that the shape came higher and closer to her.

Suddenly, a pair of red optics flashed right in front of her face.

She screamed.

Not far from her position, Greyback heard her. He was in beast mode, and when he heard the second yell for help, he ran faster.

But before he reached Skylark, he caught a glimpse of something…or someone…in the corner of his eye. He screeched to the halt, panting.

"Jagna? What the Pitt, are you OK?"

She didn't answer him. She didn't even look at him. He was about to characteristically snap at her, but then he noticed her optics were shut off…and her feet weren't touching the ground.

"Jag…?" He cautiously moved towards her, but when he was almost at her, she disappeared.

"The hell?!"

Then a voice echoed through the leaves above him.

"This way…"

He frantically looked around him, searching for the source of the voice.

"**This** way, bozo…"

It came from his left. Before he followed it, he trotted to the place where Jagna had been. He stood exactly where she was…but he could not feel anything but the leaf little beneath his paws. He bared his fangs, and followed the echo.

As he ran, sunlight peeking through the leaves hit his eyes. An out-of-place dark patch suddenly passed over him, and once again he screeched to a halt.

He craned his neck to look skywards…

"Skylark!"

She was hanging…or something…10 metres in the air.

"Sky!"

But like Jagna, she disappeared.

"Ready or not, come on down!" The echo voice mocked his helplessness, but he continued to pursue it.

He ended up in a less dense part of the forest, where the trees were spread further apart, but the buttress roots were twice as high. He stopped, sniffed the ground and air, and transformed. Growling, he withdrew his weapon.

"I wouldn't suggest that, you might get careless…"

There was that voice again. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and he fired, narrowly missing Skylark. He gasped and lowered his weapon. Skylark, like earlier, seemed to be hanging from something, or was maybe even suspended.

"Which one, which one?"

Skylark appeared again, this time on his other side. As soon as he turned, she disappeared just as quickly, and Jagna appeared on his right.

"Eeny, meeny, miny, mo…"

With each word, one Maximal appeared while the other vanished, forcing Greyback to dart his head back and forth between them, hoping he would find some way of freeing them.

Finally, it stopped on Skylark. And for the first time, a third figure materialised just behind her. It was the femme they had been tracking….but she had found them.

She smiled widely down at him. She then pointed at Skylark with a lazy expression on her face, "Miny…" her finger travelled across to the other tree, where Jagna appeared again, "Mo. Okay then. I'm allergic to feathers, anyway."

Very suddenly and quickly, Skylark was thrown at Greyback. The femme's hand, which had the owl in its clutches, detached from her arm and darted towards the wolf, taking Skylark with it. Grey collapse as his comrade landed on him, sending them both toppling backwards. The hand was then sucked back into its wrist socket, attached by a long, pink thing.

The femme leapt over to Jagna. Greyback and Skylark were coming round and groggily got to their knees. When they looked up, the unknown femme had Jagna over her shoulders. She smiled cruelly down at them.

"And now, I make my dramatic exit, stage right. Adieu."

She saluted them, bowed, and threw down something that exploded in smoke. The two units on the ground tried to fan away the smoke as they tried to see.

It cleared away, and they were gone.

"Jag, NO!"

--

Meanwhile…

Rhinox had the casing from Pangaea Two in Hercules' latest-technology holo-scanner. He couldn't wait for Skylark to return from wherever she went to have a peek at it. The results were fascinating.

"Lightwing, look at this…" He beckoned the flying squirrel femme to inspect his findings, "…it seems to have a coating of some sort…I can't quite figure out what it is, its properties keep changing."

"…Huh?" the femme enquired confusedly.

"Would you run a few tests for me?" the rhino asked.

"With the fancy gismos?" The squirrel began to bounce excitedly, making Rhinox smile. He nodded, and quickly taught her how to work the equipment. She was a fast and eager learner.

Optimus entered after about 20 cycles when they were halfway through tests.

"Where's Skylark?" the optimal bot asked, looking around for her.

"Oh, she left while ago," Lightwing answered automatically.

"Did she? I thought she was working in this with you two…"

"She was, but she got a call from Greyback. He said it was important, personal or something like that…"

She was rather distracted by the vast number of technologies aboard the Hercules she didn't notice Optimus had come up right next to her until she turned round and walked into his leg.

"Where did she go?" the Optimal gorilla asked as she rubbed her nose. He held a slight advantage over this small femme: the 'gossip' from Pangaeas One and Two had not reached the Hercules.

"I, uh…don't know…"

Rhinox had taken an interest in this conversation now, as he wanted to know where his science project partner had run off to.

"She's lying, Optimus…" he said slyly.

"No! Lightwing?" Optimus asked exaggeratedly. He had not known Lightwing very long, but he had a feeling this would work, "I think you must be mistaken, Rhinox. If she doesn't know, she doesn't know. It would just be a shame if you uncovered anything about that casing without Skylark…"

Behind the two mechs, Lightwing finally blurted out, "She didn't want me to say…" Optimus and Rhinox turned to face her, "Grey said it was private…"

"Fair enough," Optimus replied, "just tell me where they went."

--

"This is bad, this is bad, this is bad…"

"Snap out of it!"

"But it's really bad!"

"Yes, and I don't need you to keep reminding me…"

Greyback and Skylark had been a bit tetchy with each other for the last few minutes. They hadn't given themselves much time to sort themselves out, but made finding their leader a priority.

"Wow. This brings back memories, doesn't it?" Skylark asked, trying to break the tension.

"Hm? Oh yeah, I'd give anything to relive those days," the wolf replied sarcastically, "But yeah…this does seem a bit familiar, doesn't it?" They smiled at each other.

"By the Matrix…" Skylark exclaimed, as she looked around the area they were searching, "Grey…this is where we first met! Remember?"

Greyback looked around too.

"Holy slag, you're right!"

Both of them rewound to that cloudy day. Skylark had managed to transform into robot mode, but Grey had had problems controlling his beast instincts, especially at lunch time.

"Can I just say, I'm glad you didn't eat me…" Skylark joked.

"You know what, me too," he replied, "feathers give me indigestion."

"Mm. The gears wouldn't have been too good for you either…"

Quite suddenly, a loud rustling came out of nowhere behind them. They spun around to face whatever it might be.

"It could be her again…" the owl whispered, withdrawing her pistol.

The rustling got louder and closer.

"I don't think so, it sounds bigger…" Greyback replied, his own weapon ready.

It was Optimus, who came out of the bushes in tank mode, crushing everything he rolled over, nearly giving the pair a spark attack. They had never seen him in that mode before.

"Primal!" Greyback growled and put his weapon back into his subspace. "What are you doing here?" he barked.

"I was going to ask you to the same thing," Optimus replied simply.

"That happens to be none of your business," the wolf replied dryly, "now beat it!"

"Grey…" Skylark whispered quietly, "…we could use his help, you know…"

"With what?" Optimus asked. They had yet to learn about his exceptionally good hearing.

Skylark looked at Greyback, who scrunched up his optics and nodded. The owl sighed, and explained what happened to Optimus.

"Why didn't you inform anyone of what you were doing?" he enquired, greatly insulting the Maximal lieutenant.

"Okay, one: you're not our boss and two: we didn't want to cause any panic. Besides, we weren't expecting to get ambushed by an invisible lizard, thank you very much! Hey…" he suddenly realised something, "Why are you out here/ how did you know we were doing anything?"

"I didn't come here to berate either of you, I was just wondering…" Optimus said defensively, tactfully avoiding the question, "and I think I might be able to help. Sector 12 harbours a lot of ground-level tunnel entrances that the Predacons used to use when we were on Earth…"

"Optimus, we already know about the entrances on the surface," Skylark protested.

"Not all of them, apparently" replied Optimus, and began to explain quickly what Rattrap told him just before he left Pangaea Two.

Rattrap said he recognised where he and Nightshaft were when they were closer to the surface of the Predacon base. When he though about it, he realised that the tunnel structure was similar to if not exactly the same as the underground tunnel complexes that he and Dinobot once used to find the counter virus for Rhinox long ago. As well as an unreported incident that Optimus only just heard about.

"I'd say we'd be better off using that. The Predacons must know you're aware of where their main entrances were, but this one is, to my knowledge, just outside of their defence perimeter."

"That could work…" Greyback scratched his head thoughtfully, "We'd need to…"

"I'll go," Optimus offered.

Greyback rolled his optics. "You've gotta stop playing the sacrificial hero part, Primal. Not only is it getting **really** old, but it's going to get you killed one of these days."

"And, no offence, Optimus," Skylark interjected, "you do kind of stick out, and…y'know…"

"Yes, but they'd be expecting you two to go in after her, wouldn't they?" the gorilla pointed out, "They wouldn't expect me to be there at all. After all, you three were all together when this happened, weren't you?

"Yyyyyeaaaahhh…" Grey answered guiltily, looking awkwardly over at Skylark. He cleared his throat "…what are you getting at?"

"A diversion?" the owl chimed thoughtfully. When Optimus nodded, she smiled. "We're good at those, aren't we, Grey?" She nudged him in his side, and he shook his head.

"Don't remind me."

"Well, I suppose it's all up to you lieutenant," Optimus said with the utmost respect, which took Greyback a little by surprise. The wolf mech glanced at Skylark, who smiled and nodded supportively.

"No pressure, then."

He looked at the other two, who were awaiting his instructions.

"Okay. Here's what we'll do…"

--

Inside a dimly lit chamber of the Predacon base, Jagna was stirring. Her optics attempted to focus on her surroundings. When she realised she was nowhere familiar, she tried to move, but her limbs were anchored to something. She shook her head and looked down at her hands, and her wrists were surrounded by energy bonds, holding her against the wall.

She grunted as she tried to struggle free, which alerted the Predacons in the room to her awakening.

"Ah, she hath awakened!"

She groaned. That was Obertron's bawling voice. She looked up and saw his mismatched self swagger towards her. He wasn't alone in the room. Three reptiles were there, too.

"I do hope you're comfortable," he began, leaning closer to her, unable to contain his smug grin, "I made sure your accommodations were exemplary…" He was starting to snigger, something he didn't often do. She scowled at him.

"You're having fun with this, aren't you?"

"More than should be allowed!" Obertron replied with the widest smile she'd ever seen on him. It was not a pretty sight.

"Your gloating is obviously misplaced. Do I get to meet the bot who actually captured me?" she jeered. Obertron's smile quickly disappeared. He distastefully looked at one of the reptiles behind him and stepped aside.

A very colourful reptilian femme stepped forward dramatically. Now that she was close up and in the light, Jagna could make out her beast mode.

"A chameleon. That makes sense…" she said bitterly. "I don't suppose you have a name, do you?"

"It's Camophlage, deary, don't wear it out. I've become quite the celebrity over the past few days, haven't I, Oby?" She turned to Obertron with a cheeky grin, and he scowled. Neither he nor Serpentia approved of her shenanigans and demanding nature.

The alarms suddenly went off, and Webneck brought up the security hologram.

"We've got two Maximals incoming…how drole, it's the dog and the birdie."

"No…" Jagna exclaimed quietly. Clearly the don't-rush-in discussion she had had with all her troops many times had not sunk in.

"This could prove to be rather entertaining," Obertron observed lazily. He and the frilled lizard exchanged grins. "All available units, converge!"

"Converge nothing." Camophlage stated stubbornly, "I've done my part. You and your little tree house gang can converge, I've got some serious catching up to do…"

She left the room, swaggering, leaving Obertron seething and practically foaming at the mouth.

"Fine. Gearcrush, take this feline ferocity to the holding chambers. And make sure her bonds are good and tight," he instructed. Jagna attempted to struggle free, but the boa's colossal size made that very difficult. He only had to have one arm around her chest to immobilise her, and he left the room with his hostage.

--

Outside, Greyback felt like a lamb at the slaughter.

"This had better work…" he muttered, staring down the barrel of an auto gun that just popped up, "Any ideas, Egghead?"

"Come on out and fight like Predacons!"

As soon as she said it, a trap door shaft opened and a band of Predacons exited to face them.

"That's your idea?!" Greyback yelled, flailing his arms, "There's at least six of them!"

"Hey, it's a distraction, isn't it?" she replied defensively.

"Well, like I said, this better work. I hope the big monkey wrench knows what he's doing…" Greyback replied hurriedly, cocking his rifle.

The battle began, and Optimus saw his chance. As stealthily as he could, avoiding the sightlines of the fighting transformers and headed for the so-called secret entrance. As Rattrap had said, it was quite large and noticeable…in fact, now that he saw it, Optimus recognised it. He believed they had escaped through it when they had attained a counter-virus for Rhinox long ago. That brought back some…memories…

Fortunately, it was large enough for him to slip down in beast mode. He only prayed that the tunnels he heard about would be wide enough o accommodate his bulk. Then again, Gearcrush was nearly his size, so he was cautiously optimistic.

Meanwhile, Greyback and Skylark hid behind a large pile of basaltic boulders, avoiding heavy fire from several Predacons such as Obertron, Webneck, Steelclaw, Sabergem and more. Skylark's wrist began to beep. She opened the flap and inspected it.

"He's in, let's go!"

"Before we get our tailpipes handed to us? Fine by me," Greyback replied, dishing out a few more shots before running back towards the banks of the lava rivers with his comrade.

"Yeah, you better run!" the coyote Steelclaw hollered, "Can't take it, can ya?!"

"Oh, shut up," Sabergem snarled, whacking the canine on the back of the head.

"Careful, kitty. How'd you feel if I broke those teeth right off your face, how tough would you be then?"

"I'd like to see you try…" the sabre-toothed tiger snapped his large jaw at the small dog, causing him to yelp.

Obertron shook his head, "Why are we cursed to work alongside such rapscallions?"

"Embarrassing…" commented Darkwing, a jet black raven.

--

Inside, Serpentia was in her leader's quarters, observing the skirmish.

"They're retreating. What a missserable attempt at a ressssscue," hissed Serpentia. Kahn laughed hoarsely.

"I…think…not…" he gasped, "Scour the rest of the base. You'll know…what you're looking for….when you find him…"

The serpent nodded and left the room. Kahn was left to watch the monitor screens, wheezing all the time.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are…"

--

Optimus crept through the unknown hallways of the underground tunnel complex. As he'd hoped, it was large enough for him, and with a little breathing space.

It was a very impressive complex. The walls were stable and lined with thick steel plates, and yet the bare rock was exposed deliberately in places. Optimus guessed this was to allow for ground movement in a volcanic area. He couldn't tell where the light was coming from, for he was in a rather dimly-lit corridor.

But that was the last thing on his mind. He had to find where they were holding the Maximal leader and also, if there was opportunity for it, to find out what was going on. Anything. This planet held a lot more unanswered questions than before they left, and he had a feeling that certain things were being hidden from him and the rest of the crew.

He stooped when he heard voices. He pressed his back against the wall, although it probably wouldn't have helped him much if he was in brighter light. Two Predacons he didn't recognise waltzed past him. A green and black komodo dragon and a griffin fuzor.

"Really, darling, any longer and I might have a fit!" exclaimed the griffin, a female with a very smug voice.

"Yes, yes, and I will be far away," replied the komodo, flicking his tongue lazily while he pretended to be listening to the griffin. His voice sounded very familiar: or perhaps just like someone familiar. Optimus remained motionless.

"Did you hear that?"

Optimus froze, and so did his spark. The griffin cocked her elegant head and ruffled her golden feathers. The lizard stopped too, and flicked his tongue again. His eyes narrowed, and he slowly started making his way towards Optimus' hiding place. Optimus was careful not to grind a single gear.

But before the unnamed reptile reached him, both Predacons widened their eyes and listened. Optimus wondered what was going on.

"Well, you heard the boss, let's get going," instructed the komodo. The griffin huffed.

"Really, Gammatron, this is the last thing we need!"

"Indeed. Come along then, Tora…"

"If you are to address me, you will do so properly!"

"Very well, **Antiquitora**. Would you like a 'Your Highness' added on as well, hm? Maybe a curtsey too?" Gammatron replied sarcastically. The griffin Antiquitora huffed again and trotted off, Gammatron snickering behind her.

Optimus sighed heavily with relief, and moved on.

A few minutes later, he turned into a corridor and there was…

"Jagna?"

She was staring at him, wide-eyed. He narrowed his optics curiously. She was shaking her head. Was it a…

…Trap.

A whole group of Predacons, including Gammatron and Antiquitora were suddenly uncloaked. He flung around in surprise, but before he could do anything, he felt a familiar jab of pain in his left leg. It was clearly the same device that was used to neutralised him when he first arrived back on Earth.

He fell to the ground, and when he looked up he saw that Jagna was being held by the new femme while she was 'invisible'.

"We've been expecting you…" she jeered, "Come with us."

--

The two Maximals were led into a large, circular chamber. There was little inside but several energy compartments dotted on the curving wall like decorative wallpaper.

In the centre was a cylinder containing glowing greenish yellow liquid. And suspended within this compartment, covered in sensors and wires, was the distorted figure of a transformer facing away from the visitors. It was breathing hard and heavily wheezing, like an engine on its last mile stretch.

Optimus felt a chill crawl down his metallic spine. He looked down at the leopard, who, for the first time since he'd met her, was quivering with fear. Optimus looked at her curiously, wondering what could possibly be so terrible.

That question would soon be answered.

"That will be all," said a voice from within the tube.

"But…" objected Webneck, who was one of the 'escorts'.

"That will be **all**," the voice repeated firmly, "I can handle it…from here…"

The reptile Webneck hissed softly, her collar expanding threateningly, and jerked her head to the Predacons holding Optimus (Gearcrush and Colossus) to leave. They did, but not without giving Primal another little shock first, just for fun.

Optimus did not look at them as they departed, but kept his optics on the strange figure floating before him. He was transfixed with anxiety and curiosity.

"So good…to see you again…feline…" the bot wheezed, jeering malice in his voice. She shuddered, but quickly reverted to staring at the thing in the suspender with utter hatred.

"How long…has it been…do you know?" he asked, his gasping penetrating every few words like a scratch on a playing record, "I daresay…you've missed me…"

"I certainly miss stringing you up like tinsel, Kahn," she spat, all traces of fear now gone, revulsion taking its place, "you haven't changed much since I last gave you a hiding…"

"Indeed not…And I told you last time…you would pay…"

Her optics narrowed to slits. Optimus had picked up on her contempt for this 'Kahn' during his time back on Earth, but now it was crystal clear.

"And, Optimus Primal!" the assailant added with a vulgar tone, "What an…unexpected bonus…" He laughed, with some effort.

"You know who I am?" replied an astonished Optimus.

"Very much so…it's been…such…a long time…"

Optimus' optics widened with dread. "Who are you?"

Jagna slowly turned her head to the optimal bot. She looked at him inquiringly, and he shrugged.

"I…am…an old friend, Optimus…one you thought you were rid of, many eons ago!"

The room suddenly filled with a blinding light. Neither Maximal dared shield their eyes for fear of missing what was happening. The form inside the suspension tank began to spin madly, the wires connecting him to his life supporting snapping off like dead twigs in a hurricane. The energy compartments on the walls were glowing bright red. Lightening-like beams emitted from them and shot into Kahn's body, breaking the glass. He raised his arms and yelled a mixture of pain and triumph. There was a small explosion of compressed energy that knocked Jagna off her feet, slamming her into the wall, and was enough to force Optimus to stagger backwards.

The glowing dimmed. Optimus tried to focus his optics. He looked behind him to see if the other leader was damaged. Terror had washed over her face and her mouth was agape. To see why, Optimus reluctantly turned his head.

There, standing before him, glowing as red as the surrounding energy compartments was a towering being with bright yellow optics, a massive torso, and a beast mode that looked like it was made of both organic and Transmetal parts.

Optimus looked on, as horrified as the feline behind him.

The Predacon warlord Kahn looked himself over, and let out a maniacal laugh.

A laugh that was all too familiar. Optimus gaped and shook his head hopelessly.

"Tarantulas…"


	9. Threads Untangle

Beast Wars REBIRTH

Disclaimer: I claim no rights to Beast Wars Transformers © Hasbro. I do not own any of the canon characters; however the plot line and original characters are mine.

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 9:** THREADS UNTANGLE

"Tarantulas! You?"

"Yes…at long last, Optimus Primal!"

The mechanoid Optimus knew as Tarantulas was no longer a disfigured bundle of parts in a test tube. And his voice now lacked the gasping and wheezing he adopted in his former state. He stretched out his arms, as if to embrace Primal. But red lightening shot out from his hands to the wall, overloading and destroying the energy compartments that had given him life again.

"But…you were destroyed…by the Vok…it's impossible!"

"You **know** him?" enquired an equally astounded Jagna, "You're kidding!"

"Oh, no he's not, my beloved opponent. Primal and I go back a looong way…"

Optimus remained on his knees, unable to move because of the shock. "But how? How long…?"

"You still haven't figured that out, Optimus? Tsk, tsk, I'm disappointed," he jeered, "Transwarp technology was always tricky, but even a monkey could have figured it out by now…pun intended…" he snickered, "You've been gone for well over four thousand years."

_Four thousand years?_ It couldn't be…They had barely been away three stellar cycles…

The newly formed spider moaned, growing impatient with the metallic gorilla, "There has always been a time lag between universes. Some big, some small. Between here and Cybertron, it seems to be only a few days. But as space stretches across universes and dimensions, so does time, elongating the days on Cybertron to years on Earth…Much like the Inverse Square Law. Your first day here equalled one day on Cybertron. The days increase in inverse proportion to the square of the time on Cybertron…" They both gave him very confused looks, "Every day you spend here is at least twice, maybe three or four times longer than one day on our beloved home planet…simpletons…"

"Impossible…" Optimus stated, dumfounded.

"Mmm, not so. Although I admit my calculations may be a teensy bit off, I mean, four thousand years compared to three, am I right? Oh well, the universe has its puzzlers, even for a genius like myself. But really, how do you think this puny little kitten managed to build up her so-called community? Not through great leadership, as she'd like to think…she simply had…time…"

Jagna snarled menacingly, but Optimus could see the pain caused by some possible truth in the arachnid's words.

"As did I…"

Optimus, now over the initial shock of seeing an old enemy long thought annihilated, grew angry. He stood up and stepped forward.

"Tarantulas…"

"Enough with the pleasant formalities, Optimus. Call me as I have been known for a millennium…Arachnikahn!"

He laughed again, louder and more menacing than before.

"Perhaps you would like to know how I still live, hm?"

"Actually, I would." Optimus replied dryly.

"Bah. I'm not in the mood for story-telling. Story-**showing**, on the other hand…" he cast his glance over to Jagna, who's face turned white, if that was possible.

"Oh, no you don't," she said, backing against the wall, "not again. I won't let you!"

Arachnikahn chuckled. "Too bad. No choice."

He 'summoned' an item from a hidden chamber in the wall using a magnetic field created by a device on his arm. Then he 'summoned' Jagna towards him by encasing the feline in a pool of purple magnetism. She struggled, but to no effect. She flew closer to the arachnid. He aimed his device at her.

"No!" cried Optimus. But as he reached out to grab her, he too was caught in Kahn's zero-gravity magnetic field. The spider chuckled again.

"Pathetic. Even in your Optimal form, you were an easy target to take down Optimus…you might as well have painted a bulls eye on that enormous chest plate. Oh, by the way, how do you like my new toy?"

As Optimus struggled, many of the things that had happened to him and his crew since their re-arrival on Earth began to make sense. The standard organic Predacons were able to take down his Transmetals because of Tarantulas, or Arachnikahn, or whatever his name was. He had intimate knowledge of Transmetal technology, as well as the influence the Vok had on it. He gave this knowledge to his band of Predacons to incorporate into their weapons and plans. And he was using that advantage against all the Maximals.

"You bore me, Maximals, you're losing your fight. This is no fun at all." Kahn stated, disappointedly, "I shall explain my story…with the help of Jagna's memories…" he cackled threateningly. Her optics widened as she tried to struggle free again.

"No!" she cried again.

"How are you going do that?" inquired Optimus, now rather worried.

"You forget…I'm an evil genius! HaheeheeheeHYAGH!" He noticed Jagna writhing in his magnetic grasp, and muttered cruelly, "This won't be as fun as the last time, but I'll get a kick out of it, all the same."

On the device he held was a console of different coloured buttons. He pressed a few, the combinations flowing through his fingers like a river of expertise.

"I'll soon have my revenge on you both…" he muttered. There was a knob on the console of his devious device. Taking pleasure in the pleading looks on their faces, he turned it. There was another blinding light, and…

…

…

The femme bot crouched behind a rock. She was always careful in this area; a pride of lions made residence there, and they did not take kindly to other felines in their territory.

She had not been on the planet long, and yet it felt like home already.

As for where she was at the moment, something was drawing her there…something familiar.

She made her way towards a very rocky landscape.

As she gingerly placed her feet on the flattest part of the rocks, something attacked her leg. Though used to it by now, it always gave her a fright. She yelped and brushed it of. It scuttled between her legs and in and out of gaps in the rocks. She extended her claws, waited, and pierced the thing through and through when it emerged again.

This was the first time she actually caught one of the little menaces, therefore it was the first time she got a good look at one. They looked like walking torches, with six legs and spider-like pincers. Why were these strange things following her around? And where did they come from? As far as she knew she was the only metallic creature on this planet…for the moment.

A little later, she came across what had been drawing her to that place. Her eyes lit up immediately at the sight of another stasis pod, like hers.

Eagerly, she made her way to the pod, and opened up its console. The buttons cried mockery at her inexperience with pod technology. After a series of trial and error, she finally got the specs of the protoform inside…it was a blank.

"Slag!" she cried, slamming her fists on the keyboard. She had been travelling for days in hopes of finding another transformer on this unknown, organic planet.

She sat herself down on a moss-covered rock, and banged the back of her head against the rocky wall. She appeared to be in a glacial corrie, the water in the tarn glistening under the mid-afternoon sun, reflecting the blackness of the slate back wall, where thousands of years of ice had taken its toll on the mountain.

She must have been on stand-by, for when she activated her optics some time later, a miniature army of those weird torch things surrounded her. She scrambled backwards; now they had joined forces to get at her. She extended her claws and growled.

However, they did nothing. They did not attack her, or even advance. They just stood there, watching her.

All of a sudden, a voice spoke to her.

"Thank the Matrix, another has arrived!" it said.

"Who's that? Where…?" she replied, looking frantically around.

"I am as you are. Alone, unsure, and in need of a companion of my own species. Thank the Matrix!" it exclaimed again.

"Where are you?" she inquired once more.

She looked down at the walking torches. They were vibrating, and looked very peculiar. That's when she discovered the voice was being emitted from little speakers on their bodies.

"You're not…you…all of you?"

"No, I am merely communicating through my arachnoids."

"So **you're** the one who's been stalking me?" she asked in an accusatory manner.

"I only wanted to talk to you, as I am now, but you always ran away…"

"Oh…yeah…" if she had flesh, she might have blushed.

"I am dreadfully sorry if I alarmed you in any way, but now that we are both here, I beg for your assistance."

"…With what?" she asked, suspiciously.

"I understand it is strange to hear my voice coming from several mini bots, but there is a valid reason for that."

"And that would be?"

"I was activated on this planet, not long ago, as yourself. All to accompany me were these arachnoids, which I salvaged from the wreckage of old ships on this planet of transformer design, as I'm sure you've noticed," she nodded, "I wandered endlessly in search of others, but in my search, I ran into…trouble.

"I believed there might have been a stasis pod in a highly volcanic area…but I went too far somewhere….I do not know how, but my body was destroyed…"

She did not know how to respond to that. "Then how are you here now?"

"Technically, I am not," the voice replied, "but my spark survived, miraculously. These arachnoids found it and have kept me alive. But every day I wondered, what was the point? There is no one but me…until I saw you…"

He said it in a grateful way, but she could not put her finger on what was iffy about his tone. There was something else going on here.

"So what do you want with **me**?"

"I implore you…" the voice begged, his desperation obvious, "…help me get a body. I have lived too long a loner, with no physical form, with no purpose. But now I know there are others like me, and together we can find them!"

"And why would you want to do that?" she asked, placing a hand on her hip.

"Why would you?" he asked back. She could not answer. It was something she **had** to do.

"All you have to do is insert my spark into that blank protoform, and activate the DNA scanning sequence. Then we can set forth on our search for our fallen comrades…"

She still wasn't sure. Something was off. There was something about his story that wasn't right. But he seemed genuine in wanting to find other transformers…and get a body of his own.

"What do I do?"

20 cycles later, all the arachnoids were assembled in a circle around the stasis pod. The femme typed away with every instruction 'he' gave.

"So…" she said, not knowing which arachnoid to look at for her question, "…now what?"

"Leave that to me."

All this time, Optimus Primal had been watching. He knew not how, but every time he tried to intervene, he could not. He tried to stop the arachnoids, and warn Jagna about the voice of Tarantulas, but she seemed to ignore him. She did not even acknowledge his presence.

Then he realised he had no presence. When he looked down, he saw that he had no body; he wasn't even a floating head. This must have been what Kahn meant: he was travelling within Jagna's memory. And yet, how was that possible? The leopard could not have seen herself do all this.

It was a strange phenomenon. One he could not comprehend, nor believe could ever be explained to him. Tarantulas had always been crazy, but a genius all the same.

He watched helplessly as the arachnoids began to glow. Something small, glowing whiter and brighter than any star rose from each of them. The hatch of the pod was open, and the glowing anomalies hovered in a circle above the blank, defenceless protoform.

Jagna took several paces back when they started to spin in a circle, moving in closer and closer to each other. She gaped in awe as they grouped together and descended down into the stasis pod.

Primal could not help but 'take a step forward' to prevent what he felt h knew what was coming next. He seemed to almost reach them…

But all of a sudden Optimus was transported through a vortex of both light and dark, and was being pulled away from the scene before. The notion of flying through unknown space soon ceased when he 'landed' on hard ground

He was in a large chamber hall…it looked like one back on Cybertron. There was a door, slightly ajar, opposite him, with strange sounds coming from it. It seemed oddly familiar to him.

He made his way towards it with his mind. He wanted to push it open, but he had no physical body to do so.

But through the crack he made out four bots: three standing and one in a chair.

The three bots standing were speaking, but he could not make out what they were saying. One of them reached for the one in the chair. He had something in his hand.

Optimus watched him as he…

"NO!"

The scene was cut off like an interruption of static on a holographic video. Optimus was sharply pulled back into reality. He was back in Kahn's chamber, but it was no longer glowing purple around him. The spider had lost his zero-grav grip on them both. Infuriated, he attempted to regain it. Optimus saw Jagna leaning against a wall, seething. She must have done something to make him lose his focus, or something like that.

She took his break of concentration as an opportunity to charge at the much larger Predacon. An unwise move, Optimus believed, but it proved effective. Kahn was caught completely off-guard and was thrown onto his back. Blind with uncharacteristic rage, the ferocious feline extended her claws and jammed them into the arachnid's torso plate…to no effect. He laughed.

"I have not spent the last 900 years in that pickle jar for nothing, you little fool!" And at that, he flicked her off him with ease. She was once again slammed into the wall.

Optimus saw his opening. He targeted the Predacon with his chest laser, and fired. It did little damage, but it knocked him back a little. Clearly, Tarantulas had incorporated his knowledge of Optimus' Optimal form into Arachnikahn's body. Had he anticipated the return of old enemies?

The time for questions was not at hand, however. Jagna looked around her, and knew it was time to get out. She signalled to Primal that he must daze Kahn again, and they would head for the only door out of that dreadful chamber.

She spotted one remaining energy compartment, dim but still glowing. She gestured to it, and pointed to Kahn. Optimus nodded, understanding exactly what she was saying.

He fired continuously at Arachnikahn. His fire still had little effect, despite his overwhelming size in comparison, but the force of the blasts knocked his opponent back several paces. Meanwhile, the leopard shot at the door panel controls. The three Predacons that had guarded them were standing guard outside, and turned on their heels as soon as they heard the door opening. They were met with a nasty shock: several slashes to the face, torso and arms.

Whilst this took them by surprise, the leopard by no means held the advantage. Three against one was tough for any bot. but right now, her main priority was getting her and Optimus out.

Fortunately, Optimus had managed to get Kahn into a corner and close enough to an energy compartment to temporarily overload the arachnid's circuits. He ran out of the room as fast as he could, shooting the door panel from the outside, locking Kahn in.

Now the Maximals definitely held the advantage. Optimus was prepared for their tricks, now that he knew how they did it. With one swoop of an enormous hand, he sent two of the three Preds flying down the corridor, landing in a heap. That left Webneck and Jagna to duke it out. Optimus assisted by giving her a shock with her own taser.

"See how you like it…" he muttered as the reptile slumped to the ground. Jagna laughed hoarsely, then summoned Primal to follow her.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" he asked as they ran past the fallen and battered Predacons.

"Uh…yeah, I'm pretty sure. This place has undergone some changes…" She blushed at the look he gave her. "Things change over so many years, thank you very much!"

He shook his head, still unable to believe how long it had been, but kept on running. Once they turned several corners, something occurred to him: he didn't know where on earth they were. He stopped dead in his tracks.

"What now?!" Jagna inquired, breathless and irritated.

"Where exactly are we, Jagna?" he asked.

She sighed. "They call this base Porta Magma…Gateway to Fire. We're several klicks underground, ninth level. They use the geothermal energy to power their base, like us, but we also have hydro-generators and solar panels."

"I still don't understand how he survived," he mused distractedly, "from what he showed me of your memory, it just doesn't make sense…it's not possible…" He dared not mention the door. But he could tell from her guilty expression she knew exactly how Arachnikahn came to be. She shook her head impatiently.

"Now's not a great time, Optimus. By now, all the Predacons will be after us. We have to move fast. And we've got quite a way to go, so come on. And…try to be as inconspicuous as Optimally possible…" she added with a hint of teasing sarcasm. Optimus resented the implication that his size would get them caught. Even if it did, he would surely make quick work of any Predacons that got in their way.

As he observed earlier, it was an impressive structure. Corridors wound over and around each other like the tunnel of a burrowing earthworm.

They ran and, as they anticipated, eventually ran into trouble. Optimus recognised the komodo dragon patrolling the corridors, and as soon as he saw them, sounded the alarm.

Before he could finish saying, "Gammatron, Terrorise", he was shot down by Jagna.

"I suggest you pull yours out, too," she said warningly. He nodded and complied, arming his chest canon.

Nearly ever turn they took, every corridor they darted down, they ran into a Predacon. This lot were much better organised than Megatron's old crew.

"How many are there exactly?" he asked over the occasional gunfire.

"I've lost track!" she yelled back, firing repeatedly at Steelclaw.

Optimus had also lost track of time, how long they had been running. He narrowed his optics, exhausted and fed up.

Optimal Optimus Primal quickly transformed into his flight mode, and charged his boosters to full throttle.

"Get on!" he instructed the Pangaea commander. She did so, and instinctively dug her claws into his wing; she knew how fast he could go.

With a roar, Optimus charged into the Predacon blockade, knocking them to the floor like bowling pins.

"Strike!" Jagna yelled, cheering the jet-bot on, "Left here, Optimus!"

"Fools!" screamed a furious Arachnikahn, who had been tracking their movement and had followed them, "Use the plasma venom charges, NOW!"

_[i]Slag[/i]_…thought Optimus. He remembered those things, particularly from the fiasco with the TM raptors. He also guessed that Tarantulas would have upgraded them as all his weapons. That was not good news for him or his passenger.

He felt himself shake a little when a weight left his wing. He stopped immediately, turned (he was amazed the tunnels were wide enough for him to do so), and saw Jagna facing off an advancing troop of Predacons.

"Jagna!" he called to her.

"You're close to the sealed exit, you'll need to blast it open, 50 yards ahead. I'll hold them off, then I'll catch up…"

"I won't leave you here…" Primal began.

"That's an **order**!" she screamed resiliently. He stayed for a second, unsure. It had been a long time since he was ordered to abandon a team mate. But then, he was used to being the one giving the orders.

"NOW!"

He was forced to follow his code of conduct, and left her, the last he saw of her was in a reflective surface on one of the walls, taking an aggressive swipe at Darkwing, sparks flying as her claws clashed against the raven's sai daggers.

Optimus arrived at his destination; the door looked thick. He got to work blasting it open, occasionally running into it with his shoulder when it was weakened by the blasts. He looked over his shoulder every now and again until there was room enough or him to get through.

He finally spotted Jagna running from around the corner. Had she fought off all those Predacons?

…No she hadn't.

Barely a second after she appeared, five or six Predacons were in pursuit of her. Optimus didn't bother to see who they were. All he saw was Jagna frantically waving at him to get moving. He did, without question. Once he was finally through the door, he readied a canon blaster and aimed at the top of the doorway.

He could see in her eyes as she sprinted towards him that she wanted him to blow it now. No. Not until she was close enough.

She dove towards him, and he took the shot.

The steel bars and slats reinforcing the ceiling were blown apart, and rocks began piling up in the hallway below them. Optimus grabbed the leopard femme before she hit the ground and rolled them both out of the way.

They both ended up on their backs, and Jagna twisted her neck to look at his makeshift cave-in. She got up and doubled over again, placing her hands on both knees to support herself as she caught her breath.

"You're stubborn, aren't you?" she asked, laughing hoarsely.

"I've had hands-on experience with compulsive subordination," he joked back, "guess I couldn't avoid it myself. But look who's calling the kettle black!"

She laughed breathlessly. "Let's get out of here…"

…

…

Outside, Greyback and Skylark were still in their hiding place, worried about how long Optimus had been gone.

"Just like old times, huh?" the owl commented as casually as she could.

"I approve of your phrasing, Sky. Thanks for not saying, 'the **good** old days'…" Greyback joked. His friend smiled.

"Almost exactly like it though, isn't it? Well…to a certain extent…" Skylark paused, gathering her thoughts.

"Only this time, Kahn has an army…" Grey muttered.

"So have we." Skylark observed. Greyback broke out into a smile. Yes, they had an army of sorts…an army of friends. He couldn't ask for more.

"And ours is bigger…" He chuckled inwardly.

"How long till they get out, do you reckon?" the owl asked the wolf mech. Greyback shook his head.

"I dunno. What do you want to bet that arachna-creep has made some modifications to that worm tunnel of his? It won't be as easy for them to get out as…"

"Easy? You think that was **easy**?" Sky interrupted. They stared at each other for a moment. Then he submitted, chuckling.

"Okay, it wasn't that easy…" Then he shut up, and pricked his ears. "…Do you hear something?"

They both turned and observed the flat, rock-covered surface of the lava pits.

"Which one was the exit again?"

That question was swiftly answered when the ground began to rumble. The two Maximals abandoned their hiding place and backed slowly away, wondering what was going on. All of a sudden, Optimus Primal shot out of the ground in jet mode, dirt and stones trailing ff him as he exited the earth. Greyback and Skylark covered their heads to avoid getting hit by these wayward vertical missiles.

"Goin' up!" Optimus cried when he was in the air. He then transformed into tank mode and pulled up next to the other two, "And rolling out…"

Greyback transformed into beast mode and leapt up on Optimus. At least they weren't flying. Skylark took to the air. She looked behind her and saw Jagna, also in beast mode, crawling out of the enormous hole Optimus had created.

"What going on, Jag?" she asked eagerly. Jagna looked darkly up at her. Her comrades tilted their heads questioningly.

"He's back…"

…

…

"Hey rat face, I've been thinking…"

"Uh-oh…"

Cheetor was sitting at his new position at one of Pangaea Two's monitors, bored out of his mind. Rattrap had a shift off and was utilising his time unproductively.

"Okay, so we're stuck on this planet again, right?"

"Thank you, Captain Obvious…"

"I know it would be a little insensitive an' all, but why can't we just take the Maximals here back home? Right now? That was our mission, after all."

Rattrap rolled his optics.

"Yeah, kid, but think about it: there are an umpteen numbeh o' Predacons, and there's anoder Beast Wars goin' on here…or have you been too busy eyein' up the girls teh notice?" Cheetor blushed a little.

"No, but…yes, but…I know!" the cheetah stammered, much to Rattrap's amusement, "I'm just saying why can't we just take the Maximals, that'll be our mission done, and then let someone else handle the Predacons?"

Rattrap had to admit, the kid had a point. "I can't say I haven't thought about lettin' someone else do the dirty work fer a change…" he replied, stretching his arms out.

"It does seem pretty pointless us being here, we're not really doing any good…" Cheetor muttered.

"Nor are you doing any harm kid," came a voice from behind them. Dragonstail was walking up to them, smiling, "at least, not much," he added with a wink. Dragonstail was the resident stallion of the Maximal crew, who was in and out of Pangaea Two whenever he was called for. He seemed to have a very pleasant disposition, and had taken to the two new members quite quickly.

"Yeah, I guess," Cheetor replied, drumming his fingers on the console, "but I still feel useless…and kinda inadequate…" He flattened his ears and fiddled with the keyboard's joystick.

"Aaah, so that's what this is about?" jeered Rattrap, sitting up and rubbing his hands together, "…So which one is it, kid? Huh? Come on, yeh can't leave me outta the loop fereveh…" He nudged his head towards a group of three femme bots.

"What? I dunno what you're talking about…" the Transmetal Two responded defensively. He looked over to the stallion for support, but received none. He was smiling too.

"I must say, you're not very subtle, my young friend. Has he always been like this?" he asked Rattrap, who clutched the crown of his head.

"Pleeease, don't go there. Oi…" Rattrap was not in the mood for one of **those** headaches.

Cheetor's shoulders were up to his ears, and he was glaring and pouting at the other two.

"Give it up kitten, y'ain't foolin' nobody. Now who is she?"

"We could always guess…" Dragonstail suggested, stroking his chin. Cheetor seemed to levitate out of his seat, tense as ever. Dragonstail and Rattrap were rather enjoying themselves.

"Let's see…" the stallion tallied all the femme bots he could think of off the top of his head with his fingers, "There's Caricaal, Nightshaft, Misty, Sunset…"

"…Or Accinon…yikes…" Rattrap continued. He had almost forgotten how much fun it was to taunt his feline companion.

Cheetor, meanwhile, felt like he was about to explode.

Just then, they heard a strange noise. It sounded like someone had thrown a toaster down a laundry shoot. Rattrap, now rather bored, got up to see what it was. Pangaea Two was not as big as One, and so he only had to walk a few paces to find out what it was.

Bounder, in robot mode, had been running as fast as his long legs could carry him towards the swallow hole entrance. But he had crashed into a shield post, and then stumbled into the hole, crashing against the walls in the twists and turns of the tunnel entrance without stopping.

He landed in a heap at the bottom, his back legs in an awkward position over his head. Quite a few bots laughed at the misfortunate hare, but Accinon went to help him up (once she had untangled him).

"I got…news…" Bounder stammered between breaths as he tried to catch it.

"Where's the fire, Bounder?" Dragonstail asked, moving away from Cheetor.

"Greyback sent me a communication," the hare replied quickly, "told me to tell you to tell everyone to put the defences to full power at each base, and to tell all field units to return to base. He said any base!" he answered quickly before the stallion could ask that question. "Kahn is back!!"

The whole base went quiet. Bounder's loud exclamation echoed down the various tunnels, and repeated itself several times. Several jaws dropped to the floor, and Dragonstail stood there looking at Bounder very uncomfortably. Cheetor and Rattrap also looked at each other, not quite sure how to react. But, funnily enough, they weren't the only ones.

"Oh, yippee…" Accinon whimpered from the corner of the room to which she had slowly retreated. Dragonstail shifted his optics from side to side.

"You sure?"

"No time, they need back-up now!"

"What? Why didn't you say so before?" the stallion demanded, cowing his hooves.

"I was specifically told that the news had priority. Now come on, we gotta help 'em!"

"I'll go!" Cheetor volunteered, not only worried, but glad to get out of the cave. What was with these Maximals and being underground?

"Uh, yeah, ok…" Dragonstail murmured uneasily. Clearly, he had never been in a situation with such pressure as this one. What did he know what to do at a time like this? "Cheetor, uh…take some bots with you, I'll…I'll keep an eye on things from here…"

Without saying another word he shiftily walked away from the gathered group and out of sight.

_Wait…me?_ Cheetor thought, bewildered by the sudden shift of command. He looked around at the other transformers, hurrying him to make a decision.

"Right, um…Sky Scraper, you fly ahead and keep us posted from the air. I'll go on ahead and get behind them and any Predacons that decided this was an open barbeque. Sandskimmer and Bounder, you run as fast as you can and create a perimeter with me, and Sunset will take the rear."

Several pairs of optics stared at him. _Why me?!_

"Well, let's go!"

Without further ado, the party left up and through the exit tunnel. Every other bot called either a field unit or a unit at the other two bases and the Hercules to warn them of the situation. Dragonstail had vanished down one of the smaller side tunnels. Rattrap stood in the doorway of one of them wondering what the slag just happened.

_Did Cheetor just give orders? And were they __**followed**_??? He never thought he'd live to see the day. But what was the stallion doing, he wondered?

"Incoming communication," someone hollered in the background.

…

…

"This is Jagna calling all units. We have a Code Red emergency situation. Report immediately to the base closest to you. I don't care which one you're supposed to be at, I want everyone inside. That's a priority order. Repeat: every unit to base NOW. Jagna out."

The message rand through every Maximal's audios like a high-pitched whistle. Pangaea One went silent.

"Well…" began Nightshaft, trying to comprehend the situation, "…at least we know that whatever they were trying to do had something to do with the Code Red…"

"Dang, when's the last time we ever had a Code Red?" Spanner asked.

"Never in **my** lifetime…" Vixen commented quietly, "Sounds like it should be a Code Scarlet…"

"Which units are out in the field right now?" Nightshaft asked rather urgently.

"Sleek…" Streakhorn answered quickly and distractedly.

"Right, and…?" Shellshock enquired, "Anyone got the duty list?"

"Comin' up, Shelly!" Spanner flew to the consoles and brought up a list of all units.

"Okay then," Shellshock picked up a microphone and spoke into it, and his voice echoed throughout the base, "would all units please report to the main chamber. You heard the cat, this is a Code Red."

In the following few cycles, a tally was taken of all the Maximals present and missing from Pangaea One. Sleek made it back to base swiftly, and was avoided by Streakhorn, and other units such as Nomad, Llamara and numerous others arrived at various times after her, muttering and chatting amongst each other for updates.

There was a buzz of excited confusion murmuring through the hollowed-out caverns of the dormant volcano like the drone of a bagpipe. Everyone was waiting for the discordant melody to start.

"Now what?" Spanner asked.

Shellshock answered, "Now we wait."

…

…

Optimus was rolling speedily along behind Jagna, Skylark and Greyback, who were all running or flying in beast mode.

His mind was buzzing. He had to let someone know. His crew had to know. He slowed down ever so slightly so as not to be heard by the three in front of him, and opened a private communication to Rhinox, Rattrap and Cheetor. Cheetor could not respond, as he was occupied, but Rattrap and Rhinox could.

"Optimus! I was starting to wonder where you'd got to," Rhinox commented as lightly as he could without letting slip the worry that had taken him over not long ago, "What's been going on out there?"

"We have a bit of a situation, team," Optimus replied seriously, "Arachnikahn seems to have returned to a full state. Don't ask…" he threw in before having to explain himself.

"Yeah, so what?" Rattrap asked, without giving it much thought, totally unprepared for the answer , "What's so dangerous about this Kahn saurian anyway?"

"It's Tarantulas." Optimus answered quietly and simply into his com-link. Rattrap's jaw dropped open a little, and Rhinox's red optics widened. Though several miles apart, each could see the other's face.

"Oi vey…"

…

…

Cheetor had already passed the four returning Maximals, but did not stop to say anything to them, even Optimus. The others were actually depending on him to concentrate on what he was doing, and so he closed the perimeter behind them.

Sandskimmer and Bounder fanned out to surround them, and the jerboa ended up hopping next to Greyback, who was panting from exhaustion.

"Get back to base, you guys," the wolf instructed.

"But…" Sandskimmer protested.

"No buts. Back inside. We need to get to P One, and fast."

"We can get there just as fast as you mate, come on!" the jerboa protested.

"Everybody on!" Optimus piped in, quickly changing modes to flight mode. Greyback winced, but jumped up onto Primal's right wing. Sandskimmer was about to follow him.

"You stay! That's an order!" he yelled as Optimus accelerated and lifted higher off the ground. Sandskimmer screeched to a halt and watch them fly away, Greyback on the wing, Jagna on the left, their tails trailing like flags in the wind, and Skylark soaring next to them. The jerboa felt somewhat resentful of being cast aside like that, but Bounder's repetitive urging to head back kept his mind from brooding on it.

Cheetor, a few parsecs away and also heading back for P Two, was only running at half his top speed. His mind was on other things than running fast. As horrible to hear Tarantulas was still alive, his mind wandered to the time they had spent away from Earth.

Optimus had explained briefly over a private communication to him and Rattrap that it had been over four thousand years since they left in the Autobot shuttle. That explained quite a lot. His heart sank at the realisation that his human friends could not possibly be around, or even if their tribe still existed. But even more off-topic, he realised that at least some of the Maximals were at least that age…older than him, Optimus…even Rattrap (though he never really gave that much thought). And yet none of them seemed or looked it…

…

…

After not too long, the flying party were the last to arrive at Pangaea One from the field. Tired and impatient, Skylark used a remote device to activate the bridge before they got there to save any of them the effort to jump across the gorge. Quite an annoyance, actually, but that did not concern her right now.

As soon as they entered the main chamber, they were swarmed by a crowd of bodies and questions. Greyback and Skylark pushed a few of them back and Jagna held up her hand to give Optimus some room. She and him has endured a large amount of venom each, but Optimus had just flown them back.

Shellshock cautiously approached Greyback once the crowd had dispersed in clouds of whispers.

"Now what?" he asked.

"Now we wait." Greyback answered simply.

…

…

Half a megacycle passed, and nothing happened. Each nano click crawled by at an agonising pace as they waited. Anxiety quickly turned to irritation.

"What are they waiting for?"

"What next?"

"Is something supposed to be happening?"

These and more questions were scattered across and throughout the Maximal bases.

Meanwhile, Greyback was deep in conversation with Skylark and Jagna. Shellshock made his way over to them.

"All units accounted for here, boss," the tortoise stated, more formally than he usually would have. Greyback shook his head.

"Then where's Nightshaft?" he asked, looking behind his shoulder for a glimpse of the steel black coils.

"She was…doing the count with me…a moment ago…" Shellshock looked around him confusedly, as if he thought he might have stepped on her. He even checked under his foot.

There was a loud thump. Jagna was banging her head against one of the wall-mounted consoles.

"What. Is. She. Playing. At?" she asked herself between bumps. Skylark grabbed her shoulders to stop her denting either the console or her head.

"She wouldn't…" the owl began. She turned her head to the others, "…would she?"

Jagna released herself from Skylark's grasp and banged her head even harder against the wall.

"Alright, Fearless Leader, that's enough." Greyback firmly asserted, grabbing her more tightly and walking far away from the wall with him. He spoke softly and assuredly to her, "Here's what we're gonna do, we're gonna…"

But before she found out what they were going to do, the alarm started blaring. A few individuals went into a panic, not sure how to cope with such a strange situation.

"Um…Jag?" Sleek squeaked, without turning her head from the monitor screen. "Crunch time…" Several units made their way over to her. "Kahn's outside…he's hailing."

"Looks like he wants to talk," Greyback observed, "You can do this. Just…be calm."

"Fine. And um, you can let me go now, I'll need those arms…" she replied, a little awkwardly.

"Hm? Oh! Yeah…sorry…" after a delayed reaction he let her go and he shuffled. She headed to where Sleek was setting up a microphone.

"Open communication channel, Predacon frequency," she instructed.

"Salutations, my fine companions!" Arachnikahn's voice and face appeared on a large projection in front of the Maximal. Many of them had never seen Kahn before, let alone the new Kahn. A chill spread across the room and crept down everyone's spine. Spanner, at the next monitor, relayed the ongoing message live to everyone else (at Pangaea Two, Base Three and the Hercules).

"You've all gone inside to play, and it's not even raining. Can't take a little wet, Maximals?" the spider jeered, his voice obnoxiously loud over the speakers.

"What is it you want, you oversized daddy long legs?" Jagna snapped impatiently, "The quicker we get this over with, the less we have to stare at your ugly mug."

"Oh, we're a bit touchy today, aren't we? My Predacon counterparts and I just want a little chat," he gestured to a selection of unidentifiable Predacons behind him. Dusk was approaching and the sun was behind them. The only reason apart from his voice they knew it was Kahn was his hulk of a new body that cast a threatening silhouette on the ground, "You should know we love a good bit of negotiating. Ask Optimus, he'll tell you…" he added with a cruel snicker.

Several people inside turned their heads to look inquiringly at Optimus. He kept his optics on the image of his old enemy to avoid their gazes.

"And what makes you think you're eligible for negotiations?" Jagna asked, crossing her arms.

"I have leverage…" He whistled, and K-Scale and Razorblade stepped forward.

The Maximals all gasped as they watched the screen in horror.

"You missed one…" Kahn sneered cruelly.

In their clutches…was Signia.

"Come out and talk, and perhaps we'll rethink the fish sticks special."

Everyone turned to Jagna. She was about to say something, but Kahn added, "Alone."

"No." Greyback affirmed. "…No." he repeated, turning to her.

"I've got to." She replied just as firmly. He was resilient, and continued to shake his head. "Look, whatever he wants, it…"

"**He's** not alone!" he interrupted, waving his hand at the image of a threateningly large group of Predacons, "Why should **you** be?"

"Because at the moment, Signia is. And I'm not leaving her out there."

There was silence. She swept the Maximals with a quick glance before confirming the meet with Arachnikahn. No one said a word as she passed them.

Except Optimus. He caught her halfway up the stone staircase, when she was level with his eye line.

"Please be careful. Tarantulas was deceptive and tricky…" he began slowly. She laughed hopelessly.

"Was. Even more now." She continued up the stairs. But before she reached the top step, she turned back to him.

"You've known him for a long time, Optimus," she said placidly, "…but technically, I've known him longer."

And at that, she left him and the others to make her way across the bridge and out through the tunnel.

_To Be Continued…_


	10. Comes the Dawn

Disclaimer: I claim no rights to Beast Wars Transformers © Hasbro. I do not own any of the canon characters; however the plot line and original characters are mine.

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 10:** Comes the Dawn

Dusk was looming. The sun edged closer to the horizon much slower than usual, lurking over the earth, as if it too wanted to stay and watch what would happen next outside the Maximal base.

The Maximal leader slowly emerged the side of the mountain, taking the long way round to meet Arachnikahn to avoid them getting wise to the entrance. All she thought about as she made her way was how idiotic it was to be out alone against a large group of Predacons, lead by their resurrected leader, but also how selfish it would be to leave her friend with said maniacs.

There he was. Grinning smugly at her, like he had done many times before. She knew this would be no walk in the park, but there was more to this meeting that she hadn't picked up on.

"My dear Jagna!" he hollered when he saw her, opening his arms wide as if to embrace her. Several of his troops snorted behind him, and he silenced them with a conspicuous hiss.

"What do you want?" she snapped, getting straight to the point.

He sighed, and did the same, "I think it's obvious what is going to happen now. You know full well they'll be back. As I have always said…"

"You don't know that…"

"Oh, yes I do. Remember last time?"

"Signia…" she stated firmly, ignoring his last comment.

"Just thought I'd warn you about the new Maximals you've embraced so readily. They're different. They're dangerous. I'm surprised at you, Jagna, letting in strangers so quickly?…or do you know already?"

"Signia." The leopard said again, her optics glowing.

Kahn chuckled. He snapped his fingers, and K-Scale came forward with his captive.

"I do sincerely hope there are no hard feelings, feline," he said snidely, holding out his hand. She scowled at him with her optics narrowed to the extent she almost couldn't see him. With a dangerously explosive sense of self-control, she took his hand, thinking at that moment she'd rather have it cut off.

Arachnikahn smirked widely. He tightened his grip on her hand, and she felt a hard pinch. She immediately withdrew it, muttered inaudibly about how he should file down his claws, and retrieved Signia from K-Scale. She hooked the dolphin's arm over her shoulder and left without another word.

"That was easier than I thought…" Razorblade commented.

"Hush! Keep your voice down till she's out of earshot, confounded fuzor!" Kahn hissed. He looked towards Jagna and Signia and his smile grew even wider.

"Well, aren't we going to follow her?" Crowbeak asked, his wings twitching with anticipation.

"Hmmm?" Kahn asked casually, turning to face the vulture, "Whatever for?"

"You know, back to their base? Wasn't that the point of his escapade?!" He was starting to get annoyed again.

"Watch that temperament, my skulky scavenger. We will be seeing her again very shortly…"

…

……

…

Back inside Pangaea One, Signia was being put into a repair chamber.

"She'll be fine," Skylark commented distractedly as she checked the dolphin's specs, "just a bit rattled. She's lucky they didn't do more to her…"

Greyback had stolen his leader away to a quieter corner of the room to ask her about her conversation with Kahn. But she said nothing, which annoyed him greatly.

"Did he say anything about…"

"I don't know."

"What?" he asked, confused, "Then what…?"

"I don't know, Greyback. If you want to know, why don't you ask him yourself?" she snapped. He was taken aback, but he quickly snapped out of it with a cutting reply.

"I just thought that **perhaps** our almighty, all knowing leader might have thought to use her head!" he snarled. His response was louder than hers, and turned a few heads.

"My head? MY head?! You talk about using heads as if we were bowling! Whose bright idea was it to ambush him the first time?!" By now they had everyone's attention. Nobody said anything, for they knew to interfere was futile, but the atmosphere was tense nonetheless as they tried to ignore it.

"That was not my fault! If it was anyone's fault, it was YOURS!" He paused, "Everything, this whole thing is YOUR fault!"

The leopard femme opened her mouth to respond, but as she did the harshness of his words sunk in, and she closed it. He was still hot with anger and annoyance that he did not notice her eyes flickered hurtfully, nor did he care when she walked away.

He felt a few stares coming his way. "What?!" he barked, and stormed off himself in a different direction.

Optimus shook his head disapprovingly. He was used to spats amongst his own crew, but the two highest ranking officers having such elaborately public displays of disagreement he regarded as highly unprofessional.

Shellshock seemed to know exactly what he was thinking. "Don't worry," he assured the Optimal gorilla, "that's as bad as it's ever been. They get over it…eventually…"

…

……

…

Elsewhere, a small, black figure was darting through the trees of a sparse coniferous forest at the foot of a steep mountain. Before the mountain actually started, a steep face surrounded it, littered with crags and ledges like old age lines of the lithosphere.

The black blur landed on a sort of porch under a ledge. It transformed into Nightshaft, and she seemed to be looking for someone.

"Don't you have a curfew?" cooed a soft, monotonous voice from behind her.

"You should talk. Isn't it past your bedtime?" Nightshaft sneered back.

Crowbeak emerged from the shadow of the ledge in beast mode, his beady black eyes scanning hers.

"Why did you come here?"

"What, you weren't expecting me to? Otherwise, you wouldn't be here yourself." Nightshaft stated simply in response. He remained still, then nodded. He swooped down from the ledge and landed in front of her, folding his wings as he did so.

"So…" he began.

"So…" She replied.

"Before we get at this 'So' thing for hours, let's get right down to it, ok?" he continued impatiently. She nodded. "Why are you here?"

She thought carefully about her reply. "I want to know why he's back," she stated simply.

"You want to know 'Why', huh?"

"I don't care about how. Why," she stated just as simply, as if it were obvious.

Crowbeak hesitated. His hatred for Arachnikahn was enough for him not to be scrapping this Maximal, but he was still a Predacon. There was a limit to what he was doing.

He leaned sat lazily on the ledge. He swung one foot and perched his arm on the other knee.

"He's been getting closer to Endgame, not stewing in a test tube like you guys liked to think," _Or me, for that matter_, he added in his head, "in fact, you gave him a little too much time to think."

Nightshaft clutched her arm and turned away, "About what?"

"Everything. You Maximals had better come up with something fast…" He transformed and turned clumsily on his large talons. He spread his wings and twisted his neck to glace at her out on one beady eye, "…before you're all scrap."

He took off, leaving Nightshaft standing alone on the windy ledge.

…

……

…

It was night, with not a cloud in the sky, but there were no stars visible. Like the nervous Maximals, they seemed to be hiding behind a curtain of uncertainty, waiting anxiously for the moment they could come out and shine again.

However, there were a few Maximals about. Jagna had left hours ago to think things over, but no one knew where. Right now, though, Optimus flew over a river, following it downstream towards a waterfall. From Pangaea Two, Cheetor and Rattrap also made their way towards this waterfall, as did Rhinox from the Hercules.

Cheetor was the first to arrive at their meeting place. He stopped at the edge of a gorge that looked down at the pool of water that swallowed the Axalon many years ago. The waterfall had retreated about a hundred metres, but the cat recognised it, and it filled him with sadness thinking about their old home and their old friends. So long ago…

Rattrap and Rhinox soon joined him, and seemed to feel the same thing, but they didn't feel the need to share it. Then Optimus arrived.

"I think you all know why I called you here," he stated in his matter-of-factly tone. They nodded. "Rhinox, have you been able to analyse the time rift yet?"

"You haven't given me much time, Optimus," his friend replied, shaking his head, still stunned by the news, "pardon the pun, but it could take me years to understand it even if I did."

"How could he be alive?" Cheetor asked absentmindedly, his gaze unoccupied and unfocused, "I saw him blow up, the aliens, they…spotted slag…" He sighed, and gave up trying to think too hard about it.

"I'm also guessing," Optimus continued, "that I don't have to remind you the seriousness of the situation now. One of our old enemies has returned, we don't know how or why. But not only does he know what we do he knows what we don't. And even though there are some things these Maximals aren't letting on, I don't think they have a clue…"

"About what, exactly?" Rattrap asked, his usually cynical tone laced in with hidden worry. "Planet Busters or Life Haters?"

"If you're talking about the aliens and the Tripredicus Council, Rattrap," Optimus answered dryly, "it could be either."

"Or both," commented Rhinox. The four of them looked at each other. Then Optimus shook his head.

"Well, let's sleep on it and talk about it when things settle down, if they do. Let's get back before they realise we're gone…"

The four friends and comrades said their goodbyes for now and left in beast mode, with a few more questions than when they had arrived. They had not discussed much, but those two possibilities sent their minds buzzing.

…

……

…

Nightshaft crept back through the entrance tunnel, over the gorge and swung between the chimneys of the cave, taking advantage of everyone's distracted manner. She managed to get to her quarters, where she could think a little more about what Crowbeak said. She wasn't sure how she felt about it, but a loud and angry cough from behind her prevented any further thought on the matter.

"Where've you been?" Shellshock rumbled from behind her. She turned sharply on her heels in slight astonishment. But she quickly recovered.

"I've been…out…"

"No slag, Night. I hadn't noticed," he replied, oddly sarcastically. Nightshaft could see that trying to soften him back into his usually upbeat mood might take some doing.

"I…went to…meet…" She was not only getting nervous, but there were odd feelings bubbling inside her. Whenever she saw Crowbeak they would emerge rapidly, confusing her terribly.

"You what? Night, are you off your nut? What if you were attacked?" he shouted, waving his arms at her in frustration. She kept her head down.

"I…I…" she stammered. What words could possibly explain? She summoned all her strength to lift her head to look into his optics. He was still wearing his serious, beyond-annoyed face, a look he rarely used. But whenever he did, it made her feel very small. After about two seconds of trying to speak, she looked back down, twisting her hands.

It took him a moment to realise what she was doing. He observed her fidgeting, and his serious face dropped instantly. He suddenly felt very guilty. Not for shouting at her, but for how she was feeling, for he had seen her in this type of mood before. He didn't know why she was acting like this, but lowered himself down a little to get a look at her face. She was on the verge of tears.

He placed a sympathetic arm around her shoulder tightly, and as soon as she felt it she lamed herself against him, scrunching her face up as she tried to stifle her sobs. He pulled her closer into a reassuring hug. Her knees lost their strength, but instead of holding her up he dropped to his knees too so hat she could rest against him comfortably.

"It's OK, Night. It's OK…"

…

……

…

Meanwhile, hours before the sun was due to crack the boundary between earth and sky, Arachnikahn was leisurely leaning against a wall in a camber on the first level (closest to the surface) of his underground base. He was inspecting a small monitor screen of one of the surveillance cameras on the lowest level, and he was smiling to himself.

"Are they ready?"

"Affirmative, sssssir," Serpentia hissed softly back, "But I confessssss my protessssssst to thisssss…exxxperiment…" she continued awkwardly. The former Tarantulas crept up beside and placed his face eerily close so that she could hear him hissing, too.

"Have no fear, my loyal lieutenant," he replied confidently, "I have been planning this for thousands of years. Much longer and harder than you could ever dream to comprehend."

"Boss, we've got a Maximal signature approaching our sector," Darkwing alerted her leader and the others.

Arachnikahn loomed over the image of the surrounding areas on the surface. His twisted mouth further deformed itself into a crooked smile.

"Right on schedule…"

He laughed as the feline drew ever nearer to being in his clutches forever.


	11. The Flames Ignite

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 11:** The flames ignite

"She's doing this to piss me off!"

"Of course she is, Grey,"

"She's overreacting!"

"Of course she is, Grey,"

Throughout most of the first hour of the next day at Pangaea, Greyback had been walking around in a strop, complaining to anyone he could find that didn't see him coming in time enough to run.

His current victims were Accinon and Optimus. Optimus tried his hardest to say nothing, for he feared it would quickly turn against him, but Accinon was surprisingly reserved, answering the wolf calmly on autopilot.

"I mean, come on, it's not like I did or said anything terrible," the Maximal lieutenant continued, now pacing. Just behind him, Sandskimmer chuckled amusedly at the look on Accinon's face.

"Well, actually…" Optimus began, unable to control himself. But the feline femme nudged him sharply in the calf.

"Can it Ginger, or we'll never get out alive," she whispered urgently.

"Excuse me, I'm talking to you!" Greyback exclaimed, annoyed at the interruption of his museless ranting.

"Very sorry, lieutenant, please continue," Accinon rushed in sweetly. Greyback narrowed his optics slightly and did so. The femme beckoned Optimus' face down to a lower level so she could whisper something to him, "Just slip away quietly when he's not looking. Don't worry, he'll just keep talking…"

She and Optimus stepped aside as casually and conspicuously as they could, and Greyback did indeed carry on with his monologue, unaware that people had long stopped listening to him.

"Kinda sucks though," Accinon mused, fiddling with a beast mode ear on her chestplate, "I mean, she's the one who told us all to stay put, right? So what's she doing going out by herself?"

Optimus nodded. He agreed it was very hypocritical of Jagna to deviate from her own curfew order and abandon the base without a word. He was not the most experienced or the best leader, but there were boundaries as to what a leader could do. Then again, had he and his crew retrieved their fallen stasis pods in the first place, none of this might have happened.

"She must have good reason for it," he replied automatically, ignoring what he was really thinking, "sometimes a leader has to do whatever's necessary to ensure the safety of their crew."

"Yeah, I know she means well, but she can be a real pain in the aft sometimes," Accinon commented cheekily.

"Says She," Optimus replied with a wink. The two smiled, and pushed thoughts of their leader out of their heads for the time being.

"I'm not the one who overreacted, am I?"

They turned their heads to see that Greyback had cornered Sandskimmer now, who gazed imploringly at Accinon, who shook her head with a smirk.

…

……

…

Meanwhile, Level 13 of the Predacon base was buzzing with blue and purple flashes of light. Gammatron was patrolling the corridor, passing the door where the eerie glows were being emitted from every few minutes.

Steelclaw nervously stuck his nose around a corner to see what was happening. The wall he hid behind suddenly got a carbon scorched hole in it.

"YIPE! Heeeey, what's the big idea?!" the coyote snarled at his reptilian assassin.

"This is what happens when abnormally cerebrally-dysfunctional metalhead canines shove their ugly mugs where it is not wanted," the komodo dragon replied calmly.

"Why are you so calm, huh? You know what's going on in there, why are you so calm?!"

"Hush, you imbecile! This operation is a delicate one…"

"No slag…" the canine came from around the corner and tentatively stepped closer to the door, "…how far along are they?"

"Far along enough for you to keep your distance," Gammatron replied, holding his hand out. Steelclaw complied, and halted. He raised a brow suspiciously.

"Why do you let on you know so much? You think it'll protect you?"

Gammatron's face remained still as stone. "You must leave. Now.

"No, he can stay…"

The two turned to see their leader emerge from the room, rubbing his hands with a gleeful grin spread across his face.

"We leave immediately."

…

……

…

In the volcano crevasse in Sector 6, Greyback paced back and forth in his chambers. He had sealed the door shut, and barricaded it with his desk. There were occasional knock, bangs and thuds on the door.

"Greyback!" shouted someone who sounded like Nomad.

"Not now!" the wolf barked back.

"You must come out now!" Nomad persisted, "Besides, you can't stay in there forever!"

"You wanna bet?"

"But sir…" the camel continued more imploringly, "…we have a large number of units approaching our exact position."

The door flew open, making Nomad take a step backward.

"What!?! Why didn't you say so?!"

"I did persist, Greyback, but you insisted on locking yourself in your room."

Greyback was about to snarl in response to the tone the dromedary was emitting, but he held back suddenly. His ears twitched.

"How come the alarm hasn't gone off yet?"

"I only just detected them."

"And you didn't raise the alarm yourself WHY?"

"I thought you should know first, lieutenant."

Greyback huffed exhaustibly and pushed past Nomad and began to run flat out to the control centre. Nomad transformed into beast mode and followed him with ease, his long legs carrying him a mile a step.

"You're a real pain in the aft sometimes, you know that, Nomad?"

"I'm so happy you can open up to me, too, Grey…" the camel joked.

"How many are there?" the wolf mech asked. The camel remained silent. Under his long eyelashes Greyback could see his eyes darting uncomfortably between their flight path and his hump. "How many?" he asked again.

"…All of them…"

"Well slag…"

…

……

…

This would be the first large-scale face-off the Maximals had ever undergone together. The Predacons had captured their leader, and they would pay for it.

Greyback stood in front of his battalion of Maximals, waiting for the Predacons to arrive. Every available unit had been called to aid them, but some could not arrive either because it was too far or too dangerous.

He felt an immense pressure on his shoulders, weighed down by the expectations of his crew to lead them to victory…he was glad to have Optimus' help at that moment, though he refused to admit it. Now that she wasn't there, he had never appreciated Jagna more.

"They're headed right for the entrance, they know where it is…" Skylark informed everybody in a panicked voice as she consulted her wrist console.

"Don't presume anything, Sky. It could be a bluff," Greyback suggested, trying to contain his own panic.

"Pretty good bluff…" Spanner gulped as Sky Scraper came flying over the hill. He flapped his wings twice, swooped and flapped again.

"They're within range. Weapons out everyone! But remember, we do not fire unless fired upon, are we clear?!" Greyback bellowed to his troops.

Optimus bent down to whisper to his temporary new commander. "Better tell them to fire anyway, Tarantulas won't hold back," he told him warningly.

"We're still Maximals," Grey replied, not look at him, "I didn't think I'd have to remind you about that."

Barely a moment later, two figures emerged from the horizon of the hilltop. The sun was behind them, but the silhouettes of Serpentia and Obertron were obvious. What the nervous Maximals couldn't tell was that Serpentia was scowling.

"Thissss isssss unaccccceptable…" she whispered to her fuzor counterpart. His expression remained neutral.

"True. But it is necessary…"

He pressed a button on the side of his neck that amplified his voice tenfold, and it swept over the Maximals at the bottom of the hill in an obnoxiously loud echo.

"Have we missed something? Are you hosting a party, Greyback?"

"Where's your leader, Predacon?!" Greyback shouted up at them. He did not need an amplifier: his rage was booster enough for tem to hear him.

"Where's yours?" the fuzor replied nastily. Greyback choked, but recovered quickly with an ever fiercer glare than before.

"I wouldn't suggest an attack at this point, Oby. You're outnumbered on unfamiliar territory." They wolf projected with great confidence now. Which he was entitled to; it was true, the Predacons did not know where their strategic stronghold were in the area.

"Ah yes, about that…" Obertron continued, "…we have a surprise for you…"

Greyback's optics flickered with brief curiosity and worry. All the Maximals looked at each other, muttering and whispering and jittering worriedly.

"Say hello, Maximals…" Obertron called in his obnoxiously loud drole, "…to our new lieutenant…"

A silhouetted figure strode out from behind the bat/ape fuzor and stood between him and Serpentia at the very top of the hill. The Maximals squinted at the brightness of the setting sun behind it. There was a bright flare of sunlight as the last crescent of the solar sphere descended under the hill, their optics adjusted, and they all gasped.

"No…" Greyback exclaimed. Optimus' optics widened.

It was Jagna. But there was something different about her. Her beast mode no longer had a gingery brown coat speckled with a leopard's spots: it was jet black with piercing green eyes. Everything about her had changed. Even her purple 'skin' and gold plating seemed duller. Her optics were no longer a soft blue, but a deep, glowing red.

A malicious smile crept its way onto her face. Her former Maximals watched helplessly as she raised her hand dramatically to her new army of beasts behind that suddenly appeared behind her.

"Predacons, TERRORISE!"


	12. Catalyst Pt 1

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 2

**Chapter 12:** Catalyst pt 1

"Predacons, TERRORISE!"

…

……

…

No one knew what happened. One minute the Predacons were charging down the slope, the next, they were retreating, having bludgeoned half the Maximals into the ground.

"Status report," Greyback demanded when they were back in the base. There was a lot of hustling and confusion inside after the battle. There were queues for the repair chambers and a crowd was gathered around Skylark, who needed fixing herself.

Spanner was the one who reported to his lieutenant. "You want the good news, or the bad news?" he asked cautiously.

Greyback sighed exasperatedly. "Good…" he answered slowly.

"Good news is, everyone's a little shook up, but nothing serious,"

That was a relief.

"…And the bad?" the wolf mech enquired, not sure if he wanted to hear it.

"The bad news is…" Spanner began, wincing slightly, "…not everyone's here…"

"What? Who's missing?"

"Carry and Nomad. They'd flanked the desert boundaries when the Preds attacked, and we haven't heard from them since," the macaw squawked nervously.

Greyback turned quickly to Shellshock, who was standing not far away.

"Shellshock, get a team together. I want a recon party to scout that area. Find them."

"Yes, sir!" the reptile responded just as quickly. He had a list of names ready in his mind when Greyback was only halfway through his sentence. "Sandskimmer will meet us in the quadrant, he's close by, so's Stampede. Llamara, Rattrap, let's go!"

Rattrap and the llama femme followed the tortoise out of the mountain. Rattrap hadn't really spoken to her yet, but he was about to find out what she was like.

"Name's Rattrap," he stated as he rolled beside her.

"…I know who you are" she replied with a surprised tone, as if he thought she didn't.

"Yeah, well, thought a formal intro might be a good idea under the circumstances," he continued. She laughed.

"Llamara," she said with a smile.

…

……

…

Back on Cybertron, a bot was sitting alone in a dimly lit room with a single laptop console on his knees. He was inspecting video footage of two Maximals: a spider and a fuzor.

There was a timid knock on the door, and a head peeped through a crack in one of the walls where there was presumably a door.

"This better be good," grumbled the bot with the laptop.

"Y…Y…Yessir. I've been told to inform you that…'It has been acheieved'…whatever that…"

"Good. Now get out."

"Yessir!"

The smaller bot darted back out of the room, forgetting to let go of the handle. His arm hooked itself onto it and he got stuck in the doorframe. He panicked; all he wanted to do was get out as quickly as possible. The phrase, 'Don't shoot the messenger' had little meaning in this place.

Once he had gone, the bot's green optics glowed gleefully and he looked back down at the image of the Maximal spies.

"Perfect."

…

……

…

Later, on Earth…

"This is Shellshock calling Pangaea One, come in home base,"

"Greyback here," the wolf replied to the reptile's communication, "How's it going out there?"

"By the looks of it, Grey, Nomad and Caricaal have been apprehended," Shellshock reported, "Rattrap overheard Pteradonna and Serpentia gloating about it…"

He waited tentatively for a response, which came after a moment's silence.

"Alright. Do one last sweep of the area then head on back to P One," Greyback instructed.

"But Grey, we've swept the whole sector," Sandskimmer protested, "and it's crawling with Predacons. Mate, even if we do find them, we're likely to 'ave a run in with some nasties as well!"

"That's an order, Skimmer," Greyback affirmed, "Over and out."

The com-link went silent.

"He's barking mad," the jerboa exclaimed quietly, "We can't all sweep this sector without getting caught, especially Stampede…"

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean, you little pipsqueak?!" Stampede snapped, highly insulted by what the rodent had just insinuated.

"Can it you guys. We'll split up," Rattrap suggested.

"Woah, woah, I don't like the sound of that," Llamara said, nervously cowing her hooves, "it's only a small area we have to check, we might as well do it together."

"Whatever! Let's just get it done and get back, please?!" Sandskimmer moaned, much to Shellshock's annoyance. He began to walk away.

"Skimmer, you don't knew where you're going," the tortoise warningly advised. The jerboa laughed.

"Mate, the desert is **my** territory. I know this place like the back of my AGH!"

He disappeared suddenly into the sand.

"Kid!"

Then, one by one, the same fate occurred for each of them.

…

……

…

Later, Greyback was rubbing his temples while sat in front of a scene of confused Maximals. There was only one person on his mind…

Until Shellshock returned. His group had found Nomad and Caricaal.

"Where have you two been?" the wolf scorned the desert units.

"We were apprehended, sir," Nomad answered monotonously, "the Predacons were about to take us to their base until the rescue party showed up."

"Good…" said Greyback, a little uneasily. Nomad never called him 'sir' before. He turned to Shellshock, "Anything happen out there?"

Shellshock stared for a moment…

"…Nope."

Greyback squinted slightly. He had a feeling Shellshock wasn't telling him something. But he shrugged it off, and turned his attention back to Nomad.

"Did the Predacons mention anything about…" but the dromedary cut him off.

"They did not sir."

"…Okay…" This was very strange. They were all so quiet. "Anyway, come with me. We've got some planning to do…"

…

……

…

Half a megacycle later, Greyback had assembled every unit into the control centre of Pangaea One. He felt somewhat awkward as the onlookers gazed on him alone for answers. He had to shrug off his nerves and get straight to the point.

"…This is a real problem, Maximals. We're going to have to devise a plan to get our leader back…"

During Greyback's speech, Shellshock was feeling strange. It felt like there was a big gnat crawling around in the back of his head, giving him a throbbing headache. He tried to shake it off, but the sensation continued.

"…The Predacons have sunk low this time…"

It grew, and got stronger…

"…Now is the time to act!"

Without warning, Shellshock let out a ferocious yell, causing everyone to turn and face him, startled optics wide. His cry continued as he pulled out his weapon and fired randomly at his comrades. Every unit in the base ducked to the ground, several of them cursing and many others asking the tortoise "what the shell" he was doing.

His yell had slowly turned to laughter, and there was a different glow to his optics. He finally stopped firing, but before anyone had time to make any queries, he pulled out a remote control from his subspace.

"All units, ACTIVATE!"

He pressed the biggest button on the remote, and immediately chaos ensued. It became immediately clear that the device Shellshock wielded was what was used on Jagna to turn her against her own kind, when 'friendly fire' suddenly erupted faster than a chain of volcanoes in Pangaea One, undercut by screams of manic laughter.

Aside from Shellshock, units like Nomad began to run rampant around the base…

"Everybody out! We have a breach!" Greyback yelled over the disorder, pointing to the exits.

Further confusion followed as a swarm of Maximals began to head for safety outside. Optimus, Nightshaft, Skylark and Rhinox ran towards the main entrance. They had barely reached the tunnel at the top of the stairs when…

"Not so fast…"

They all screeched to a halt, and Primal's optics widened.

"No…"

Rattrap was blocking their path with his gun drawn and aimed straight at them. "Goin' somewhere, Maxies?" He sneered, his optics burning. Now that they were standing still, they could see that, like Jagna, Rattrap's colour scheme had changed. His blue helmet and blue tinted armour now had a black sheen to it.

"Rattrap…" Rhinox began, taking a step forward, "…fight it, whatever it is. Come on…" He held his hand out to his best friend, hoping that whatever the Predacons had created had not consumed him completely.

Rattrap seemed to consider it for a moment. In fact, his optics dimmed slightly and he shook his head. "Rhinox?" he asked, seemingly confused. The rhino's spirits were lifted a smidge, and he edged forwards even more.

Rattrap's head twitched violently, and the eerie glow returned to his eyes. "Get bent, Maximal!"

He fired. His missile hit Rhinox square in the chest, sending him flying back into Optimus' arms. The four of them looked at each other, then at Rattrap.

"You ain't goin' nowhere…"

…

……

…

Elsewhere in the base, Greyback was trying to organise himself and his comrades. "Last chance, emergency exit! Go, go, go!"

As he and a few remaining Maximals ascended the escape tunnel, the sealed exit was suddenly blown apart. They crouched down and covered their heads with their arms to protect themselves from the ricocheting rocks and dust. They looked up, and saw a pair of bright red, narrow optics headed towards them.

"No…" Greyback exclaimed.

The transformer they had formerly known as their commander stepped dramatically out of the billowing dust with a broad smile on her face.

"Miss me?" she asked, before signalling the Predacons that emerged behind her to open fire.

When all her former comrades were down, she turned behind her to beckon someone in from outside. His enormous bulk stepped in one massive foot at a time. He observed his fallen enemies, and smiled triumphantly. He raised his arms high above his head.

"At last, the Maximal base is MINE!"

Arachnikahn's laugh echoed through the cavernous tunnels of Pangaea One, reaching every unit, Maximal or Predacon, spreading a sense of foreboding triumph throughout.

Standing next to Kahn, his new lieutenant twitched, the Maximal inside her dying to get out and stop this. But she could do nothing but watch as her new Predacon self smiled.


	13. Catalyst Pt 2

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 13:** Catalyst pt 2

The Maximals had been rounded up in the central control cave of their own base like sheep, their own kind forcibly turned against them. Kahn was tapping away at the old Axalon console.

"Pitiful as it ever was…" he muttered, "…Lieutenant!" Jagna stood to attention, "Round up our…'allies'."

Jagna nodded, and turned to the rest of the crowd, "Hope you don't mind, but we've made some alterations as to how we are to be addressed, so you simple-minded Maximals don't get your tiny little minds confused," she mocked at the group on their knees in front of her.

"Hellcat," she announced.

"Right here…"

Caricaal came through one of the tunnel ways with Accinon's neck in her surprisingly ironclad grasp. Thoroughly enjoying herself, she threw the lynx on the ground next to the rest of the Maximals.

"Eradicator," Jagna called. The bot once known as Shellshock hollared.

"And…" her gaze landed on the Transmetal rat, who held up his hands before she could say anything.

"Eh, stick with Rattrap. It's gotta nice…" he slammed his fist into his hand in front of his chest, "…punch to it…" he added with a grin, cracking his knuckles. Jagna shrugged.

"Whatever. Blockade?"

"Here." It was Stampede.

"Strider." She received a grunt from behind her, which turned out to be Sandskimmer.

"Drifter?" The bot who used to be Nomad nodded, sneaking in a punch to Rhinox's head.

"Good. One more…Peruvia."

"What?" grunted a grumpy llama femme looming over Spanner. Greyback shook his head in disbelief at the extent of this infiltration. So many of his comrades, his friends, had been converted.

"And then of course," Kahn stepped forward and announced, "my loyal lieutenant, Jaggid. As in jagged edge, am I right?" He raised his brows, and she smirked, extending her claws close to Greyback's neck.

"Jag…" he said, desperately, "…it's me. Snap out of it…"

"Sorry, pup," she mocked, edging her hand closer so that the tips if her blades touched his throat, "these Maximals have left the building." Her optics narrowed, and Grey's hopes were slashed, as he thought his neck would be too. But she withdrew.

Optimus was seething. He knew Tarantulas well enough to be aware of the extent of his madness, but this was going too far. To turn so many Maximals against their wills into Predacons? And for what purpose? That question was soon to be answered.

"Now that Pangaea One is in my possession," Kahn began, striding up and down in front of his captives, "I think it is time to extract the command codes for your old security systems, Jaggid. I want them now."

The incarcerated Maximals gasped. They were surely slagged now; their leader, who had all the codes locked away in her memory banks, had been converted into one of their enemies. Jagna, or Jaggid as she was now known, nodded and dimmed her optics. Green grid lines transformed into codes that scrolled down; she was scanning for the codes

"As for you, Primal…" Kahn began, advancing towards the other Maximal leader, "…this is going to be fun…" he said with his characteristic cackle, "Let's see if I can personally dismantle you…"

"I don't think so…" Optimus rose to his feet, aiming the laser in his chest at the Predacon leader.

The enemy he used to know as Tarantulas threw his head back laughing. "I. Think. Not." He raised a finger, and lowered it again. His original Predacons aimed their weapons at the newly converted transformers surrounding Primal, causing them to step back in surprise. Then Kahn took out his own weapon and aimed it at Jaggid's head. Sho was still in semi-stasis lock, looking through strings of code, unaware of what her new leader was doing.

"Your choice, Optimus. Would you have them die…as Predacons?" He smiled menacingly. He knew how every Maximal was programmed with a pathetic code of heritage. Not only would it be a horrible death at the hands of Predacons, but **as** Predacons would surely set off a few sparks in his honour circuits.

He was right. Looking around him, Optimus saw the confused faces of who used to be Llamara, Stampede, Sandskimmer, Caricaal, Shellshock, Nomad, Jagna…and Rattrap. With painful dignity, he sighed and disabled his weapons. He lowered his head, defeated. Greyback shared in his despair. His comrades were no longer within reach. They were far gone, for once the other Predacons lowered their weapons, the new Preds laughed hoarsely.

"Rattrap," Kahn ordered.

"Yeah?"

_This'll be good_, the spider thought, twiddling his fingers, "I would like you to tell me exactly what modifications have been made to Optimus' exostructure since arriving on Cybertron. Now."

Rattrap saluted and repeated the same process as Jagna, and thought. But wait…Rattrap was one of he few bots who knew first-hand what had been done, why would he need to think about it?

After a few minutes, he coughed uncertainly, pulling himself out of his trance-like state. "Uh…ahem…uh, boss?" the rat began awkwardly.

"What?"

"I, uh…I can't."

"Can't what?"

"Well…" he beckoned Kahn to a quieter corner of the room. When they were out of earshot of the Maximals, he continued, "I can't get to the info…"

"What?"

Rattrap winced and covered his head, ready for a blow of some sorts, but he was saved by a black leopard's intervention.

"I can't either…" she said.

Kahn began to fume. The pair in front of him shrugged. "This cat is extremely stubborn…" Jaggid said defensively.

"You've noticed that, have you?" Kahn scorned about his former nemesis. Wow, this was confusing…

"How d'we get past this?" Rattrap asked loudly, stirring Greyback's attention. The rodent received a sharp slap on the head from the leopard.

"Easy, will you?" she hissed warningly, "Try not to blow our cover, eh?"

_Cover?_ thought Greyback. What was there to cover? He narrowed his yellow optics suspiciously, and nudged Optimus as inconspicuously as possible. Still disheartened, Optimus lifted his head and caught sight of what Grey was obviously listening in on.

"No need to worry about that. The Maximals haven't a clue even of your existence, let alone your presence here…" Kahn's voice stated calmly.

Greyback and Optimus looked at each other. _Whaaaat?_

"The Council will be pleased by our success…" Rattrap said, rubbing his hands together.

"No! The Council is not to hear of any of this until I say so!" Kahn snapped. Both Rattrap and Jaggid, Optimus and Greyback were taken aback by this, for different reasons.

"Council?" Greyback asked Optimus.

"When, then?" Jaggid asked Kahn.

"You will find out I due time, my dear…Now then," The large, deformed spider marched back to the centre where his captives were, signalling his followers to form a threatening ring around them. "It appears we will have to do this the fun way." He chuckled maniacally. He pointed to Rhinox, Skylark and Greyback. "Take them back to Porta Magma."

Without another word, six Predacons, both original and new, grabbed their assigned hostages, immobilised their upper limbs with energy bonds, and began to march away, led by Arachnikahn.

Greyback was being held by Wretch (who was a female fire ant, and a fairly new addition to the Predacon clan) and Stampede…which was awkward. Equally as awkward was Rattrap holding his gun gleefully at Rhinox's back, aided by Llamara…or Peruvia…or whatever. Skylark was to be accompanied by the terrible duo, Pteradonna and Khronus.

"Stampede…" Grey began.

"That ain't my name no more, gearhead, it's Blockade now. Duh," she replied patronisingly.

"What's happened to you?" he continued, ignoring her harsh, sadistic tone, "Snap out of it…" he whispered hoarsely so that the ant would not hear him. Blockade pretended to think about it, but quickly resided to punch him hard in the stomach. Considering her size and strength, it winded him completely, and he had to be carried (or rather, dragged) the rest of the way.

Khronus and Donna were having the most productive collaborative mission they had ever been on together. Skylark not only had her arms tied, but the Predacons had disconnected the wiring to her wings. They enjoyed themselves, tossing her to and fro, passing her and 'accidentally' dropping her a few metres every now and then.

Rhinox said nothing the whole way. He wasn't thinking about what Tarantulas would possibly do with them. All he could think about was the bot behind him, wielding the sharp blaster barrel digging into his back, snickering to Obertron.

…

……

…

Back at Pangaea One, Jaggid was frantically tapping away at the console, her red optics narrowing. Optimus observed her carefully. What was she trying to do?

After yet another unsuccessful attempt, she slammed her palms on several buttons at one time, causing sparks to fly out of the hologram projection chamber, as it had done once or twice before. She snarled and slashed at the machine with her claws, which had been modified to fit her new persona: double-bladed with sharp, jagged edges, ironically enough.

Serpentia, who had been sulking in a corner, noticed this and smugly slithered her way over to the bot who replaced her as second-in-command.

"Running into a few ssssnagsssss, are we?" she jeered. Jaggid, instead of acting out as she did with the console, smiled and slowly turned her head, the rest of her body eerily motionless. Then something happened, no one was quite sure what, that made Serpentia shiver, and suddenly she was hurled across the room. The original Predacons and the remaining Maximals followed the snake with their heads until she slammed against a wall and coiled onto the floor in a heap. The newest additions to the Predacons caught each other's eyes, and smiled broadly with Jaggid, a clear warning to all other bots in their presence to watch their tread.

There was definitely something odd going on, Optimus thought. He considered what Rattrap said earlier about the Council. It couldn't possibly be the Maximal High Council, secretive though they were. All he could fathom was the mysterious Tripredicous Council. He was fortunate (or rather, unfortunate) enough to know the very basics about them, for they were highly covert and not very well-known amongst Maximal parties.

Jaggid, Eradicator and Drifter approached the fallen reptile, and whispered inaudibly to her. Though furious, she slithered away submissively. She arrived at the console, transformed, and began attempting to decrypt the security codes herself.

"Take these Maximals to one of the off-tunnel caves," instructed Jaggid, "I believe I had some features added to this cone if ever such a…tragic event ever occurred!" She wailed satirically, sparking heaps of laughter from the Predacons.

"One thing before we go, Jag…" Accinon stated forcefully. Jaggid nodded amusedly, "…How is it you can't access your own files, huh?" Clearly, Optimus wasn't the only one who had caught on to her strange behaviour. The Predacon lieutenant hesitated.

"Uh…well…Skylark obviously changed the codes when she learned of my well-needed conversion…" she said slowly.

The lynx scowled suspiciously as she and her party were lead off.

…

……

…

In one of the relatively new 'holding caves', the Maximals had been herded and caged in with energy bars in the doorway. There was also a screen that cut them off from hearing any of the Predacons' plans.

Unfortunately for the captors, the Maximals could plan as well.

"I don't like this one bit…" Spanner commented.

"You and everyone else shackled up with you, bird seed breath!" Snapped Accinon, who had taken being captured and dragged by Hellcat very personally.

"That's enough." Optimus stated firmly. Gladly, they listened to him and quietened down, "I'm guessing I'm not the only one who's detected something very fishy going on," some of them shook their heads, "I don't know what it is yet, but if I know…knew…Tarantulas, it might be hard to get to the bottom of. Any ideas?"

"I might have one," Spanner suggested. The Maximals leaned their heads in.

…

……

…

Minutes later, Sandskimmer, or Strider as he was now known, entered the holding cave with a smug, superior look on his face.

"Well, well, Maximals, those of your friends lucky enough to have been absent during Greyback's stirring motivational speech will soon be captured. One thing we could get into was your tracking system. Primus, what a synch!"

"Yeah, about that…" Spanner noted inquisitively, "Your memory has been a little glitch-ridden lately, bro. I sure hope you managed to 'remember' the X-9-niner codes that only you know…"

The new Predacon stared blankly at the macaw.

"Oh? Oohhhh, right, yeah, 'course. Those, er, secret security codes for the, uh, shield generators are, uh, locked away safely, yeah…" he stammered, improvising feverishly, scratching the back of his neck as if there was a tick gnawing at it, "How do you feel about that? That, uh, X-niner thingie's gonna compromise the security of your entire establishment if…"

"Dude…" Spanner interrupted dryly, "…it's your favourite game console…"

The jerboa looked stunned for a second, but then he sighed and tried his best to recover.

"Fine, fine, you've caught me out. There are some little bitty thins I can't remember on account that there might have been some side effects of the conversion. But mate, there are some things…"

"Save your breath…" a voice from the doorway interrupted.

The Maximals turned to see where the voice had come from. Peruvia, formerly known as Llamara, was leaning against the wall, inspecting one of her swords. Cheetor tilted his head curiously. He had never talked to her before…

"As much as I hate to admit it, rodent, they're not as dumb as they look. Besides, you're a terrible liar."

"Nobody asked you, Fluffy," Strider sneered nastily, but he was surprised that he hadn't noticed her lurking there before, "What, you got a better idea?"

"Give me two minutes and I'll prove it."

Strider squinted and reluctantly stepped aside. Peruvia glided forward, optics still glued on her weapon, her feet guiding her to Spanner. The macaw bot gulped and looked up at her. He didn't like being around Maximal Llamara with those swords, let alone Predacon Peruvia. She wasn't very good with them…But in that sense, he was relieved. She couldn't do much harm with them…

What a mistake to assume.

In the blink of an eye, she withdrew her second sword, crossed her arms and sliced Spanner's chestplate in both directions. He yelled and fell sideways onto the floor, gasping. There was a roar and Wildcat leapt forwards for a counter-attack.

But just as quickly, or possibly even faster, he was cut down as well. Underneath her visor, the llama femme scanned each unit in the room individually, searching for a twitch of movement. From her left, Nightshaft extracted her tail whip and aimed for the oppressor's arms, but it ended up sliced in half and wrapped tightly around the spider monkey's neck.

Peruvia held Nightshaft in front of her, holding her makeshift noose in one hand and pointing a sword at everyone with another. Nobody moved.

"Here's the deal," she began coolly, the primate choking restlessly in her grasp, "you're going to help us 'refresh our memories'. The more you do, the less time each of you will have to spend in a CR Chamber. Come along, dear," she addressed Nightshaft smugly, dragging her out backwards by her throat. As she passed him, she gave Strider a nasty grin.

"Fine, fine, you can start with her…" he shrugged submissively. When he said that, a few worried gasps emitted from the crowd of Maximals.

As they left, Peruvia glanced at them all and her wide small slowly disappeared and turned into a sinister scowl, sending shivers down several spinal cords.

"You'll never underestimate me again."

She left with Strider and Nightshaft. The stunned Maximals looked at each other wide-eyed.

"I think it's safe to say…" Accinon began darkly as she tended gently to Spanner, "…that they're not themselves today…"

…

……

…

Back in the control centre, Jaggid loomed over Serpentia at the console.

"Running into a few snags, are we?" she muttered cruelly at the irony. The reptile hissed softly but did not respond. Just then, they received a transmission from the Predacon base.

"They're not responding at all. We need you at Porta Magma. Serpentia should be able to handle things there." Kahn said lazily.

"Wishful thinking, I think…" said Jaggid meanly. The cobra hissed. "Okay, I'll be there in 40 cycles." She turned on her heel, "O woman's work is never done!"

As she left, Serpentia's cobra flap expanded to its fullest width and she bared her teeth. Darkwing made her way carefully to her former lieutenant.

"Well…?"

The serpent turned her head slowly towards the raven. "Don't worry. We won't need them for long…"

…

……

…

Much later at Porta Magma, Jaggid arrived in Kahn's chambers.

"Well, well, well, I must say I never thought I'd see the face of my enemy in my humble abode on such good terms," Kahn whistled amusedly. Jaggid nodded.

"What exactly is the problem?"

"My troops aren't having much luck extracting the necessary information from the Maximals," he explained, his hands behind his back as he inspected his computer screen, "I thought, as a seasoned interrogator, you might have something else in mind." He turned his head over his shoulders to glance at her. There was a smile on both their faces.

"Oh, I'll think of something."

…

……

…

Rhinox and Skylark were being held in a single room with three cells, separated by powerful energy bars. The third cell was empty. Skylark ruffled her fearthers uncomfortably.

"He'll be fine," Rhinox assured her unconvincingly. She attempted a smile, but it turned into a grimace.

"What do they want with **us**, anyway?" the rhino continued.

"Obvious," the owl stated grimly, "We're the tech heads, and Grey…he has the back-up access codes to the secondary systems…"

Rhinox's optics widened. Skylark nodded.

"I don't wanna know how they're gonna try and get them from him…"

…

……

…

At that moment, Greyback was strapped to a board propped against a wall in an empty chamber. He struggled as hard as he could, but he was bound around his chest, hands and feet.

The door to the chamber suddenly opened, and he was almost blinded by the bright yellow light. He adjusted his optics, and they widened when a blurred silhouette at the door came into focus. Jaggid was standing in the doorway, her red optics blazing and her claws extended. Though he couldn't see it, she was smiling.

She casually closed the door behind her and dimmed the lights up. He could see her clearly now, and she him.

She observed him very carefully as he glared at her, not with his usual stubborn stare, but something that resembled true resentment. This was not the Maximal he knew. But he wouldn't give up just yet. She folded one hand across her torso and pressed the other against her chin as she walked towards him.

"You know, Grey, I rather like you tied up," the black leopard jeered maliciously.

"Okay, you're enjoying yourself a little too much right now, but snap out of it. Come on, Jag, what's the master escape plan? Or is it infiltration?" he asked eagerly with the smallest sliver of hope, starting to get a bit ahead of himself. She rolled her optics and sighed heavily.

"You're doing well today, my former friend. Two out of three, nice one. Yes, I am rather enjoying myself, thanks for asking, but it's a no to the escape plan. Despite what that massively overeager puppy act of yours wants to believe, Jagna is **gone**. Good riddance."

Desperately trying to ignore the very last part, he asked, "And what about number three? Infiltration?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

He sighed. He'd give it one more shot.

"C'mon, Jaggy," (he hadn't called her that for a long while), "fight it. The old you is still in there somewhere…come on!"

She only laughed.

"You really are a hoot. I never would have guessed, by looking at you,"

_Wait…what?_ His optics narrowed to slits.

"What do you want?" he asked cautiously.

"It doesn't mater **what** I want. It's **how** I'm going to get it that'll be fun…"

She smiled widely at him, but it was not the good kind of smile. At least not for him.

She took several paces towards him, and he was unable to stop whatever she was thinking of doing. What the slag was she thinking of doing?

"Don't worry. I don't bite…hard…"

He almost found out when he felt her hand grab the fur on his chest.

Then Rattrap barged in.

"Yo! The boss needs yeh, pussy cat."

Greyback winced as Jaggid's grip tightened on him.

"Ugh. Can it wait? I'm **working**…"

"Yeeeeeahhh. Next time, try workin' faster. Now git."

The cat's grip loosened on her captive. "Fine." She left the room, and winked at Greyback before she turned the corner.

"That was…perturbing…" he stated uncomfortably. He tried to adjust himself but his bonds tightened. The black Transmetal rat smirked.

"So…" he said, propping himself against the wall, "…you gotta thing for her, huh?"

"What?!" the wolf's optics widened distractedly.

"Puh-leez, anyone with two optics and half a processor coulda seen it. But don't worry, it's between you an' me." He tapped the ridge of his nose.

"Yo, Blockade, throw this lugnut back in with the other rusty cogs," he instructed the mammoth when she walked in behind him.

Still in a slight state of shock, Greyback did not resist when Blockade practically yanked him off his holding board and flung him back into his cell. Skylark scurried as close to the bars as she dared to make sure he was alright.

"Cosy, ain't it?" Rattrap jeered.

"Ratface…" Blockade said coldly and suddenly, "You're inspection date has come early…"

Without knowing quite what was going on, Rattrap was dragged by Blockade and Khronus out of the holding chambers, leaving the three Maximals very confused.

"What the slag are they doing?" Skylark asked.

"You have not performed efficiently enough, rodent!" Arachnikahn's voice boomed throughout the tunnels from outside.

"Looks like we're about to find out…" Rhinox muttered.

"The only reason you were even **considered** was your long-term connection to the Maximals, and yet you have nothing!" The spider's anger was quickly rising like a shaken-up fizzy drink. "Your services are no longer required. You are DISMISSED!"

There was a loud crack and a flash of bright purple light filled the corridors. Stunned, the Maximals waited to see what would happen next…or find out what had just happened.

A few moments later Khronus returned with a lifeless Rattrap around his neck. The eagle hurtled the apparently unconscious rat into another empty cell, activated the bars and left, slamming the door behind him.

The rat lay still in his cell, limp as a rag. Skylark, who was in the cell opposite him, carefully leaned in closer to inspect him. He was no longer steel black, but his normal colours again. The owl medic looked at the other two questioningly, who both shrugged.

Suddenly, he began to stir.

"Oi, my head…guys? Ugh. What's goin' on?"

"Rattrap?" Rhinox asked cautiously.

"Nah, it's yer Uncle Wheeljack!" the rat answered satirically.

"Sounds like him," the rhino whispered to Greyback, who shrugged again.

"What…what happened? Where the heck are we?" the rat enquired again.

"You don't remember?" Skylark leant a little closer to the bars of her cell to get an even closer look at him.

"Weeell, if I did, I'd sure be askin, wouldn't I?" Rattrap replied sarcastically, "Rhinox, c'mon, fill me in."

Rhinox didn't know what to think at the moment. Then it hit him.

"Tarantulas! He must have salvaged part of Megatron's old machine that turned me Pred!"

"I'm starting to feel left out, aren't you, Sky?" Greyback muttered through the glowing bars. Rattrap continued to rub his head.

"What's this about Preds? Yer not tryin' teh tell me I went…"

"Predacon." Rhinox answered for him, "But Tarantulas didn't seem too pleased with you…you're a Maximal again, old friend." He gave the rat a smile. It was returned, though confusedly.

"Man, what a day…I think…how long's it been? What do they wanna know?"

"They want the access codes to Pangaea. You and Jagna were having trouble getting to the info you have. The Predacon programming must have been blocked out of your safeguard core memory."

"Well, uh, ok, let's go with that…" Rattrap said, still confused, "So what were these access codes then? Nuttin' too important, I hope?"

"Only the most important. Info on all of our projects; past, present and future, not to mention the security overwrites," Greyback began, but trailed off. He wondered if Rattrap remembered what he said to him in the other room not too long before.

"Okay then, so what are they?" the rat enquired again.

As Skylark began to explain, Rhinox spotted something attached to Rattrap's side. It looked like the casing that was found at Pangaea Two…

…It was a trick.

The rhino roared and grabbed Rattrap by the neck by plunging his arms though the bars. Shocked by this unexpected attack, the Transmetal rat suddenly changed colour…back to jet black, his Predacon colours.

"You're not Rattrap!" the rhino yelled, shaking the rat through the bars, damaging his arm on the plasma bars as he did so, "Who are you? WHO ARE YOU?!"

Rattrap's optics suddenly began to glow. He looked straight at Rhinox, and before he knew it the Maximal tech was flying through the air. He landed against the bars at the other end of his cell. He yelled in pain and fell to the floor.

A few moments later, he looked up to see Rattrap…or who used to be Rattrap, towering above him.

"Yer smarter than yeh look, hornhead." His voice was soft, venomous and uncharacteristically chilling. His optics were now bright white.

"Way to blow our cover, Aft Face…"

Jaggid had entered the room, along with Blockade. Their optics, too, were white. But they were not blind.

"Who are you?" asked a shaking Skylark, who was leaning against the wall of her cell, clutching her wings close to her as a form of protection, "You're not them…"

"And she's supposed to be in charge of our health," the large mammoth femme sneered.

"Blockade, seal the doors. Rattrap, pretend there was a glitch in the system and shut off the cameras," Jaggid instructed. The two complied, and were soon cut off from prying eyes of the outside.

The black leopard then did something very unexpected: she disabled the bars of each cell. Immediately, without thinking, Greyback lunged at her, rage pumping through him like liquid energon. But all she had to do was look at him to send him flying across the room like Rhinox. Skylark quickly darted over to him, Rhinox too.

The three…Predacons, or whatever they were stood in a line facing the three Maximals.

"What are you?" Rhinox asked, his voice trembling with anger.

"Spies to you, traitors to these Predacons, yada yada," Rattrap explained, waving hand, "it's a little complicated."

"Try us…" Grey spat, still seething, clutching his stomach, not taking his eyes off Jaggid.

"I suppose you've figured out that your friends have undergone a little more than an upgrade," the leopard said lazily.

"More like…an infusion," Blockade continued, "they were kind enough to waltz into our arms…or was it us that waltzed into their bodies?" The three 'agents' cruelly chuckled.

"Kahn…he's planned this…this is End Game!" Skylark said horrified.

Rattrap let out a loud, "Tcheh!"

"As if that eight legged moron could ever be truly wise to our cause," Blockade snapped, spitting at the mention of the arachnid, "He's a disgrace to the Tripredicus Council!"

"The Tripredicus Council? Impossible…" Rhinox exclaimed

"He has strayed from our cause and our sight since his 'death'…" Rattrap added, using his fingers for emphasis, "But we're here to set it straight. Oh, but don't tell him. He thinks we're working for him!" He and Blockade erupted with laughter.

_That explains a lot_, Greyback thought, optics still cemented on Jaggid, who had remained eerily quiet.

"We're not interested in your little Pangaea project…" she whispered, "We are here to complete our mission."

"Good luck," Rhinox spat, "For one, we know what you're up to, and second, there's no way you won't somehow be twisted to seeing things his way." Rhinox's memory wandered back to Tarantulas' plot to destroy the Ark.

The Tripredicus agents smiled. The pitiful Maximal fools had obviously missed a vital part of Tarantulas' confession about their origin.

"Say nothing, and you will all be spared…" Jaggid began.

"Squeal on us, and all your friends will pay…" Blockade continued.

"Piece. By. Piece." Rattrap finished, yanking his own arm off. Rhinox and the others saw a brief flicker of something familiar in his face…and it was in agony.

"Got that?"

The helpless Maximals nodded, huddling together. Rattrap reattached his arm as they rebooted the cameras and bars (the Maximals ended up in the same cell) and began to leave. Greyback shouted out.

"Where are they? They've gotta be in there somewhere!" Greyback shouted, choking on his words. Blockade was the last to leave. She turned and stared at him with a blank, empty expression.

"We told you. They're gone."

She stepped out of the doorway, but before she slammed the door, she said,

"For good."

…

……

…

"What happened in there?" demanded a furious Arachnikahn.

"Nuttin'." Rattrap replied, quickly adjusting his optic colour back to red.

"Nothing? Nothing?! You locked me out, shut off our security cameras and you tell me it's NOTHING?!"

"Ease up, legs. We were just, eh…'testing' our persuasion techniques, if yeh know what I mean. They should be ready teh talk soon."

"But, but…" Kahn protested.

"It wouldn't have helped to have you there. All they needed was the gut-wrenching, gushy Maximal pity-for-their-poor-comrades routine and bam! You ain't got nothin' to worry about, boss." Stampede interjected, making sure her optics had gone back to red, too.

"But, but…" Kahn tried to get a hold of himself. He turned to Jaggid, "Is this correct?"

She nodded, "Affirmative."

Awkwardly, the huge spider bot shrugged it off. "Very well. We'll resume questioning tomorrow. Are you sure you can't access those files, still?" he added in a more hushed tone.

"I told you, give us more time. I've nearly broken through this cat's eggshell of s core consciousness," the leopard gloated. Kahn frowned.

"It's not as easy as it first appears, not with this particular group of Maximals. If you don't have those codes one way or another in two days, I will go in myself."

"Ahem. I thought we agreed it was a no-no on the whole positronic lobotomy. I mean, I'm still in this body, hello…"

"**If** we are to succeed, it will be by any means necessary. Understood?"

She stared blankly at him, a flicker of resentment barely visible crossed her lips.

"Well?" he demanded again.

"Yes, my Lord."


	14. Breaking Down Barriers

Disclaimer: I claim no rights to Beast Wars © Hasbro or its characters. However all original plotlines and characters herein belong to me.

***

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 14:** Breaking Down Boundaries

Rattrap sat hunched over his knees on a low stool and cracked his knuckled anxiously.

"We're in big trouble here!" he exclaimed.

"Calm down Shorty, it's only three Maximals," Blockade assured him unsympathetically.

"Nu-uh! I just got word from Strider, they've **all** figured it out, they **all** know!" He was getting slightly hysterical, so the mammoth femme slapped the back of his head hard.

"And what difference does that make? It's not like they're gonna do anything about it. Not like they can, anyway," Blockade huffed.

"Besides," Jaggid interrupted, who was leaning casually against a wall, "I instructed Peruvia to make a point to the Maximals about squealing on us. And you now how poignant she is," The leopard grinned maliciously, and Blockade did too. Rattrap, on the other hand, only grimaced.

"Yeah, but you know how Maximals are, they'll try somethin', I can feel it…"

He began ringing his hands so much that his joints might have become loose and his hands would fall off. Observing this, Jaggid had a thought.

"Perhaps you would feel better if something were done about it. if someone took care of it…" She glanced over at the mammoth, who caught on immediately and her grinned widened.

"Yeah!" Rattrap thumped his fist in his hand, "Yeah, you're right. Someone oughta…oughta…why yeh both lookin' at me like that…?"

Minutes later…

"I didn't sign up fer this!" the rat yelled as he was 'escorted' to the exit by Blockade and Jaggid.

"Just shut up and get going," Blockade uttered as she and the leopard hurled him outside. He landed on his face with a mouthful of basaltic soil. "Now git!"

The rat spat out the dirt and mumbled, "I don't get paid enough…"

…

……

…

Back at Pangaea One, Nightshaft was lying in stasis lock in Moonhawk's arms, severely damaged and twitching every now and then. She had been gone for hours, and nobody knew what they were doing to her. Though they did have a clue: occasionally they would hear her yells, and the Predacons' bursts of manic laughter.

When she was returned to them, she was flung callously through the doorway already in stasis lock. Then Peruvia followed her inside. She received many vicious glares, and a few attempts to attack her person, but she quickly deflected them. Darkwing and Xaphron could be seen lurking in the doorway waiting for her to return, but they, too, looked terrified of her.

The llama femme scanned the rest of them again gleefully. She was searching for units that looked like they might talk…

Her eyes fell on Spanner, who was still clutching his chest, trying to keep the holes in his chest closed so as not to expose his vulnerable circuits. She smiled and walked up to him, pushing Wildcat out of her way. She knelt down to Spanner's level, and he tried his best to wriggle away from her.

To his surprise, she gently ran her hand across his chestplate. But there was no sympathy there; in fact, an even crueller smile crept onto her face.

"That will have loosened your tongue. Take him," she instructed the Predacons at the door. Darkwing withdrew her sai blades threateningly and beckoned the sabertoothed tiger mech, Sabergem, after her. They rushed in quickly, grabbed the macaw, and rushed back out. Peruvia took her time leaving, savouring the anguish of her captives.

Optimus shot up onto his feet. He stormed over to the femme, but did not intercept her. Firstly because he did not want to provoke her, and secondly he knew he would not be the one to be punished…

"What are you going to do with him, what do you want?" When she turned away and didn't answer him, he raised his voice, "What are you going to do?!"

She turned back over her shoulder, her expression blank.

"Gee, I wonder…" She glanced past Optimus, and he turned to see that she was looking at Nightshaft, and his spark sank at the sight of her. When he turned around again Peruvia had gone and the bars were back online.

He shook his head and made his way over to the unconscious spider monkey. Moonhawk looked up at him as he approached, she had never said a word to him before, and in their dire situation the first thing she said to him was, "They won't stop," Her voice quivered and her eyes were wide.

He knelt down beside her, gently laid a hand on her shoulder and looked down sadly at Nightshaft.

"We'll find a way…" he said softly.

…

……

…

Meanwhile, the three captive Maximals in Porta Magma were calculating their chances of getting out alive. The odds were against them at the time. In fact, they overheard several conversations about their 'interrogations'. Skylark twitched nervously.

"They're pretty serious this time…" she muttered to no one in particular. Rhinox placed his hand on her shoulder, "…Seriously, why do they want our access codes so badly? Kahn's perfectly capable of hacking our systems manually,"

"If that's the case, why hasn't he tried that before?" Rhinox asked her.

"Well, Rhinox," Greyback began, having been silently brooding in a corner, "there were several impeding ramifications preventing him from acting. One: until several days ago, he was mangled and deformed beyond moving a finger without life support. Two: Skylark doesn't give herself enough credit when it comes to her encryption. And three: until the…infiltration…" he stammered uncomfortably at the thought, "…the location of both our bases was a well-kept secret. During our truce and even during the first war Kahn couldn't find them with both hands and a map."

"Both?" Rhinox asked. Greyback nodded. "I thought you said you had three bases?"

Greyback and Skylark's faces lit up.

"You're right…" Skylark began, slowly rising to he feet, "We could see if anyone managed to escape and…" but Greyback cut her off.

"We can't. I tried any kind of communication, but I think Jeepers Creepers implemented some signal blocking system, the slagger," He trailed off and began to curse inaudibly.

"Perhaps," Rhinox replied, "but then again, there's always trying to communicate outside the buffer zone…" He raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"What, try to escape?" Skylark whispered.

The rhino nodded. And, to his surprise, Greyback jumped at the idea. Not to mention, he had a wide smile on his face.

"Let's go for t. we did it once, we can do it again. How's your memory, Sky?"

She smiled with him. "As good as it ever was…"

…

……

…

Two megacycles later, Rhinox and Skylark managed to bypass the circuitry of the bars of their cell. It was very fiddly work, but with concentration, hard work (and a few of Rattrap's missing tools) they managed to shut down enough bars for them to squeeze through without scorching themselves or setting off the alarms, much like Nightshaft had done previously.

Grey poked his head out of the door and looked both ways. Thankfully, the Predacons were being briefed elsewhere, and the coast was clear.

"C'mon," he whispered. They followed him out the door, creeping along the walls in an exaggerated fashion.

However, they soon ran into trouble in the shape of a green pterodactyl femme floating a foot above the floor.

"Looking for something, pup?" Pteradonna asked the wolf mech when she gently lowered herself to the ground in front of him. She raised her flamethrower and aimed it as his face.

"Y'know, I really don't have time for this," said Grey, passive and annoyed.

The reptilian flyer chuckled. "Any last words before I…BLURBL!"

She received a facefull of foam from Greyback's flame neutraliser. The wolf shook his head, snickered and moved on, leaving the 'dactyl bot blubbing on the floor, attempting to wipe the stuff off her face.

"Hide her somewhere, we can't the alarm being raised," Greyback instructed Rhinox, who was a few seconds behind him. The rhino complied; he picked up the Predacon, gave her a hard punch in the face and placed her not-too-carefully into what seemed to be a supply cupboard.

"Um, guys?" Skylark squawked, "Haven't they installed a personal safeguard?"

"…Yes they have…" Rhinox replied. He had looked at Pteradonna's watch when Skylark mentioned the safeguard, and a light on her onboard console was blinking, "…which means it's time for us to run."

They ran.

As they ran, Greyback commented, "Let's hope they'll be Preds about it and ignore each other's calls for help,"

"Hold it!" Rhinox bellowed. The other two screeched to a halt, knocking into each other. They turned to the rhino, who was inspecting his own wrist console. "There's someone a few corridors away,"

Greyback moved over to him to see. He squinted his optics and tilted his head to a smaller corridor to their left.

"Here's what we'll do…"

…

……

…

A few minutes later, Skylark was the first to round the corner. There was someone blocking her path. She stopped, Rhinox and Greyback behind her. Her optics widened as two sets of claws protruded from Jaggid's hands.

"Come on…" she sneered, baring her sharp teeth, "I'll take you all on!"

She was about to advance on them, but she was suddenly alight with electric energy and she let out a roar of pain. It seemed to last for ages, but when it died down so did her voice, and her optics went dim. As she fell, a hand caught her around the waist and held her just above the ground.

"I got her!" Greyback called, Jaggid slumped backwards over his arm. He had been waiting behind her, and he was the one who shocked her, "Turn that thing off…"

The Greyback that stood behind Rhinox flickered and vanished. It was a hologram.

"Okay…now what?" Skylark asked as she watched the wolf lift their former leader into his arms and stand upright.

"Run, run, run as fast as we can…" he answered solemnly.

"Alright, but let's get going before anyone else decides to show up," said Rhinox.

…

……

…

Everything was black.

Rustling.

There was something there.

She tried to move her hands.

They were being held behind her back.

The scenery came back into view gradually from a dark blur. The first thing Jaggid saw was the earthy ground, and thick roots extending beyond a pair of legs that weren't hers. She looked up and saw who they belonged to.

"Ah, Greyback," she said pleasantly with a hint of malice as he stared down at her with a fixed expression of hidden contempt, "nice to know we're both into this sort of thing," she added with a toothy grin, referring to her energy bonds.

"Alright Jaggid, we're willing to make you a deal," Skylark interrupted monotonously.

Jaggid lowered her head, retaining her grin, ignoring the fact she was tied to a tree. "That's sweet, but you don't have anything I want…"

"Except the access codes…" Rhinox continued.

The leopard's face dropped immediately. They all looked down at what they could see of her face, she was thinking hard.

"…I'm listening…" she eventually forced out.

Skylark straightened herself out before continuing. This was not how things should be. "You want to access our files at Pangaea One: fine. Seeing as you're already there, you'll get there eventually, I guess,"

"Mhm…" the Predacon mumbled, still staring intensely at the ground. Rhinox observed her carefully. It was almost as if she was willing the tree roots to come alive and rip the Maximals apart. "And I would have to give you what in return?"

"Get your sorry souls out of our Maximals," Rhinox stated blandly.

"Yep. Going to happen. NOT." she replied, he grin no longer visible, quickly twisting into a scowl. "You don't have anything to bargain with."

"Except that you let slip a few details about yourself that I don't think you're aware of," Skylark said slyly. Jaggid's ear twitched, "Something about Stampede you didn't figure out in time: she talks in her sleep."

Jaggid growled.

"So we know how to get you out, with or without your help," Rhinox continued darkly.

The Predacon lieutenant suddenly smiled a broad, malicious grin, and chuckled.

"You'll never find her…she's mine," she said forebodingly, raising her head slightly.

"No…" Skylark exclaimed hopelessly.

"Sorry you went through all that trouble for nothing," the leopard continued satirically.

Greyback, who had been silent the whole interrogation, suddenly lunged forward. He grabbed the converted Predacon by the scruff of her beast mode head and forced her close to him, teeth bared.

"Get out…" he began venomously, "…get out before I RIP YOU OUT OF HER!"

His bellow only made her laugh more. "Oh really? Go on then…" she dared him. His face remained contorted with rage, but then his face dropped, and he let go. He took a few steps back and turned away.

"Oh, by the way," she continued, "I think she'd be very disappointed that you'd so willingly compromise your entire team for just one bot."

"It's for **all** the Maximals whose lives you've stolen," Rhinox spat angrily.

"Is it?" Jaggid asked, her gaze fixed on Greyback. He lowered his head, hiding his face from all of them, and walked away and slumped behind another tree.

"They're all mine…"

**To Be Continued…**


	15. Reincarnation

Disclaimer: I claim no rights to Beast Wars © Hasbro or its characters. However all original plotlines and characters herein belong to me.

***

Beast Wars REBIRTH

VOULUME 1

**Chapter 15:** Reincarnated

Having left Porta Magma several hours ago, Rattrap was rolling along a river bank in vehicle mode, muttering to himself about how he got the short end of the stick and so on.

As his, or rather his host's, wheels rotated beneath him, the Predacon had a sneaky suspicion he was being watched. Much like his host, this Rattrap was also very instinctive, and readied himself to transform for battle if need be.

He tried to listen out for the faintest sound, but all he heard was the gentle splashes of the river.

But suddenly those splashes became a lot louder. Before he could comprehend the cause of this, he felt a large weight suddenly flatten him and his wheels dug into the ground.

"What the…?"

Once again, his face was shoved into the dirt of the moist riverbank. Once he pulled it out, he transformed using the unnatural sequence of, "Rattrap, Terrorise!"

He turned around and spotted the back end of his ambusher diving back into the water.

"Oh, yeah?" he sneered. He withdrew his pistol and began to fire round after round into the rippling water. The bullets penetrated the surface one after the other, leaving a jet stream of bubbles in their wake. Until one of them hit something.

"Ha!" he yelled triumphantly. He refused to enter the water himself, but he crouched at the bank and peered into the depths, squinting his optics. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

Despite his care not to enter the water, he was suddenly drenched by a facefull of it. A powerful jet of water suddenly shot out from under the surface, sending the rat flying backwards. He was pinned on the floor by the water, his limbs flailing pathetically. As soon as it stopped, he coughed and spluttered as he pulled himself onto his feet.

"You're asking fer it, fish lady," he jeered at Signia, who now faced him in robot mode, her jet shooter ready in her hands.

"I think not," she replied angrily.

"Ain't you supposed to be in a fish tank right about now?" he asked her nastily, grinning smugly.

"You've done enough damage, all of you. I need you to snap out of it!" She raised her weapon again and fired. He was flung backwards even further. Though determined, the dolphin was reluctant to go so far as to hurt him. For even though she had not known the Maximal Rattrap long, she knew that his reprogramming was not voluntary.

She repeated her attacks again and again so that she followed him as he went further backwards because of the force of her water jet, between each shot pleading to him to snap out of it.

"Stop it! BLBB STOP IT!" Rattrap yelled imploringly between soakings. He was getting more and more agitated and desperate by the minute, and after several cycles, he cracked. He yelled at the top of his voice and shot blindly in Signia's direction. She didn't expect a counter attack, and so the barrage of bullets caught her completely off-guard. The bullets caught her neck, torso and arms. She dropped her weapon and was forced backwards herself.

Blind with rage, Rattrap continued firing and forcing the dolphin backwards. Suddenly, she fell into the river behind her. He breathed in and out slowly and seethingly, he watched her float away.

He shook his head violently.

"What're you doin'?"

He looked at the unconscious body floating away in the river.

He grabbed his head.

"What did you do?! Get out…"

He fell to his knees.

"Get out…GET OUT!"

On his last cry Rattrap threw his head up. He yelled in pain as his optics glowed the brightest white. The light seemed to try escape his sockets. Then the white light tried to leave his body through all available holes and joints. His back was arched and his arms outstretched as he yelled.

Then the light left him completely, but not in the form of light: it resembled smoke but it was not a gas; it had the fluidity of water, but neither was it liquid. It left his body, and his Predacon colourings flickered and faded. Rattrap fell on his side and gasped. An enormous weight seemed to disappear from within him immediately.

"I beat you…" he uttered breathlessly, "…I beat you…I'm a Maximal again. Now get lost, Predacon…"

But it was not entirely gone yet.

With a lot of effort, he lifted his head to look up. The glowing white entity remained close to him. It looked like it was about to advance on him one final time, that entity that possessed him.

Suddenly, a dark figure came at high speed towards the Transmetal. The light entity turned on it as it reared.

Then everything went black.

…

……

…

Rattrap groaned, complained about something, and got up slowly. Where they heck was he? All he could tell by the dampness and eerie echoing was that he has in a cave…deep in it, too.

"H'lo?" he called into the abyssal darkness, "Helloooo? Anybody home?"

Infrared was doing him little good, so he took out his portable blow torch and set it alight. But all he needed was a little spark to illuminate hundreds of luminent markings and engravings on the cave wall. They were not quite Cybertronian, so he could'nt figure out what any of it meant. It was a mixture of his own language, the Predacons', and even Vok glyphs that he had become so uncomfortably familiar with.

They continued to glow, even when he extinguished his torch. Slowly and cautiously, he examined one of the carvings. They were so technologically complex in their illumination, yet the simplicity of the art was…awe inspiring.

"Yo, uh, if anyone's there," Rattrap continued, growing ever unsure of his safety, "show yerself. Or am I gonna hafteh smoke yeh out?"

He barely had time to consider his own threat before a blinding spot of light appeared from deep within the cave. He narrowed his optics and shielded them. The source of the light was a silvery sort of colour, and it was moving towards him.

He didn't know what to do at that moment. His instinct said 'run like the wind, scrapheap!', while something else was keeping his feet glued to the damp floor.

As the light source drew nearer, a shape started to form. It towered above him twice in height, but not in a looming or threatening way. It looked like an extraordinarily tall transformer, but something was wrong with the bottom half of its body. It looked too big and bulky.

There, stood in front of Rattrap, was a transformer…but not like any he had met before. He didn't seem to have a beast mode at first glance, but with a second look the rat saw the bulky bottom half of his body was made up of a technological and organic mix of a horse's body, but the top half of the mech himself was completely metal.

A carbon-metallic centaur. He looked down at Rattrap with a warm and knowledgeable smile.

"Aw, man," Rattrap said softly, "Now I seen everythin'…"

"Greetings, my friend. I trust you are now healed?" the centaur cooed in a deep and melodic tone. Rattrap stared. He recognised this guy…

"You're the one who helped me…" he half-asked, half-stated, referring to his Predacon 'counterpart'. The centaur nodded with a small smile. "Thanks. But…how'd you do it?"

"It was not me," the fuzor answered simply. When Rattrap raised a confused brow he continued, "It was already gone by the time I arrived. You just needed a little help."

Still confused, Rattrap took a few seconds to look over this strange individual and therefore change the subject.

"You, uh…you ain't got no beast mode…" he observed. The mech's robot half had no beast mode parts to suggest he transformed into anything…which was odd, to say the least.

The mech had a mane composed of carbon-metallic fibres that stretched from his head all the way down to the tip of his horse hide's tail. He had red markings all over both halves of his body, similar to those embedded into the walls of the cave. The centaur nodded slowly in response.

"So who are you?"

"My name…" the bot replied slowly and mysteriously, "…is Saggitare."

"And, uh…you Maximal or Predacon?"

"Does that matter to you?" the centaur asked, titling his head, his silver dome reflecting some of the patterns on the wall like a curved mirror.

"Kinda, yeah…"

The horse/bot smiled again. "I am, technically, a Maximal…"

_Oh, good_, thought Rattrap, a little prematurely.

"…but faction is irrelevant when one is on a constant quest for peace and spiritual understanding."

_Oh, boy,_

"Wait, wait, how come I ain't never heard o' ya?" Rattrap asked, now with s hint of suspicion, "Yeh ain't on any o' the databases,"

Saggitare smiled and shook his head. "That is…complicated…" he stated with a slight grimace.

"Well, I ain't got nowhere to go," Rattrap stated simply.

"Very few know of my existence, and they are rather secretive about me…"

"Like…?"

"I don't think I should appoint names to the curious faces I have met, but they have promised to conceal my existence for the time being."

"Uh…huh?"

"They are doing it per my request, you must understand. I prefer solitude. And they have been faithful to their word."

"So, in theory, I could be the first to meet ya, and no one could say otherwise, 'cause o' their promise?" the rat said slyly, rubbing his chin and smirking. Saggitare raised his brows and chuckled.

"Your logic is often woven into the threads of satire, is it?" he asked, still laughing.

"Uh, yeah, sure…"

Saggitare's smile quickly faded, and his face softened to a more serious tone. "We must move quickly. Though my faction does not hinder me, I do object to possessing people against their wills. You know by now, I'm sure, that you are not the only one to have been used as a host…"

"I knew from the beginning…" Rattrap replied rather painfully.

"How?" Saggitare asked.

"I felt ev'ry feelin'…thought every thought…but I couldn't do nuthin'. I thought really hard, which really hurt by the way, but I couldn't stop him. I saw…everything."

His voice began to shake, so he stopped. Even though he had helped him, he had just met this guy and would spill nothing if he could help it. But Saggitare looked on him sympathetically.

"But the fact that you eventually overcame that ordeal and took your life back is a good sign that we can save your friends."

"Woah, woah, what happened to 'I prefer my solitude'?" Rattrap asked dryly. Saggitare shrugged.

"It had to happen some day. Come, we must go…"

…

……

…

Much later, Peruvia stood guard over the captive Maximals. Misty had been returned to them, and she was in stasis lock. Accinon tended to her, angrily muttering to herself whilst trying to hold back bitter tears.

A voice suddenly erupted from the doorway, "Yo, Fluffy!"

Peruvia turned her head. "Oh, it's you Bucky…"

Rattrap leaned against the doorframe, "Ha, funny, the teeth, yeah, hey listen…" he hoisted himself off the frame and veered his way over to her, "…the boss has ordered a swap. I'm takin' over for ya, so you can go chew on some grass or something', kay?"

"I wasn't informed there was a swap before tomorrow," the llama sneered suspiciously. The Transmetal rat shrugged.

"Orders 'r' orders. Now git. And put those toothpicks down, will ya?"

Peruvia's visor scanned him quickly. "Fine."

Once her second blade was safely put back into her subspace, Rattrap whipped out his gun and shot her twice in the chest. She didn't see it coming, and so fell to the ground quickly. There was a gasp of surprise from both the Predacons and he Maximals. Before any could retaliate, however, the rat spun on his heel and shot down Elektra and Sabergem too. Then he turned to the Maximals.

"Let me guess…" Optimus said darkly, "…this is a takeover plan?"

"Eh, I guess yeh could look at it that way, Fearless Leader…" the rat replied, returning his weapon to its holster.

Fearless Leader? The rodent hadn't called him that since before…

"…Rattrap?" he asked.

"Rattrap!" Cheetor exclaimed enthusiastically, for once pleased to see the rat.

"Hold yer applause please! Yer gonna need hose hands for shootin' our way outta this mess. Yo, Hoofbeat, cut 'em loose,"

The Maximals wondered who he was talking to. His head was turned behind him, but there was nobody to talk to.

Another gasp erupted from the crowd as out of nowhere, a cloaked materialised and reared up. Saggitare's powerful carbon-metallic hooves pounded the bonding mechanisms o the Maximals' prison, making them flicker and fade.

"Saggitare!" Moonhawk squealed with delight. She leapt up and grasped the fuzor by the waist, hugging him tightly. The centaur smiled and returned it.

"You know this guy?" Wildcat asked, baring his fists as he had no weapon anymore.

The hawk looked up at Saggitare for permission, and he nodded. She grinned, delighted at the idea of finally being able to tell someone about his existence.

"This is Saggitare. I met him a few years ago…"

"Years?!" the cougar exclaimed, astonished.

"Yeah, he asked me not to tell…" Moonhawk continued defensively, "But we can trust him, I swear!"

"Fine…" said Spanner, "but I'm still not convinced about you…" He took a step towards Rattrap and looked down into his optics, "How do we know this ain't no trick?"

"Pretty elaborate trick," Rattrap stated simply, "And back off, would ya? You smell,"

Spanner did not respond for a moment.

"A'ight. I'm convinced," he said with a shrug.

Optimus beamed. "Can't take you anywhere, can I?" he asked with a wide smile, looking down at the three fallen Predacons, glad to get his friend back.

"Eh, what can I say? Now c'mon, we gotta kick these bums out…"

"But you don't look like Rattrap," Accinon sneered, still unconvinced.

"Oh, this?" he swept his hands down at his still-black paint job, "It's a temporary fix." He pulled off the holographic disguiser and his natural colours returned.

"And what about the Predacons?" Saggitare asked, "The converted ones, I mean?"

"Yeah, about that…" Optimus began, hoping Rattrap would reveal how he became a Maximal again.

"No time, Scrape Ape, we gotta move."

…

……

…

"Spanner to Greyback, Skylark and Rhinox, are you guys alright, do you read me?"

Rhinox woke with a start when he heard the communication. He looked quickly around to make sure Jaggid was still being watched. He could just about see Skylark sitting on a rock close to their captive, apparently asleep.

"Sky!" he whisper-called to her.

"I heard him…" she whispered back, keeping up appearances. She pretended to slowly wake up and made her way over to him. Greyback then came from behind the same tree he slumped behind earlier.

"Greyback to Spanner," he replied in a hurried voice, "are you guys alright? How did you…"

"Get out?" the macaw finished fr him, "Weeeell, we gotta little help, bro."

"From who?"

"Heeey, are you guys talkin' about me? My ears're burnin'," Rattrap's voice cooed over the com-link.

"Rattrap?" echoed Rhinox's astounded voice.

"Wait a minute!" Greyback interrupted urgently, "Keep your weapons on him guys, we've fallen for this already!"

"Yeeeaaah, about that…" Rattrap began to explain awkwardly, "…sorry. It wasn't me anyhow. I can vouch fer that."

"We've thought it through too, Skipper," Sandskimmer continued, "I think it's safe to say we got the real deal right here,"

"You mean…it can be done?" Rhinox asked, his voice alight with relief.

"Yeah, Rhinox. We're takin' back Pangaea One and kickin' the Predacon stuffin' out of our comrades. Literally."

Greyback, Skylark and Rhinox looked at each other, then to Jaggid. She was watching them, trying to listen.

"I've got a plan…" Skylark whispered.

…

……

…

"This is Rattrap calling all Iniquity Units to group at converge at Sector 2 in two megacycles, Boss' orders," Rattrap announced to the Pangaea One control centre.

"And whicccch bossssss iss thisssss?" Serpentia sneered inquisitively.

"Ah, a menial drone pipes up. Which leads me the inform you rookie bad guys, any o' you guys who aren't on the guest list will be swiftly dealt with, if yeh know what I mean, am I right, guys?" He looked over to a group of the 'Iniquity Units', who nodded but with a confused look on their faces.

"As you were, minions," Rattrap concluded, rubbing his hands together. He retreated into the private quarters tunnel behind him, where the rest of the Maximals were waiting, out of sight of the security cameras.

"That was mildly impressive, Rattrap," Optimus commented slyly when the rat returned, "In fact, I think I should be worried…"

"Hey. It wasn't completely one-sided. He could get into my head, but I got in his, too."

"Really? Then what's Iniquity?" Accinon asked curiously.

Rattrap raised his finger and opened his mouth to respond, but he got stuck. After a few seconds of contorted facial expressions, he said, "I dunno. Hey, don't look at me like that. There were things he couldn't get to either, so there!"

"So Ratface," Cheetor began, "what's it like bein' a Pred?" He had got an opinion previously from Rhinox, but what he and the others seemed to have missed was the severity of this instance.

"Please don't ask, I'd rather not…" Rattrap trailed off.

"Sorry Trap…" the cat replied sheepishly, "but how did you, well, become a Maximal again?"

Rattrap considered it for a moment, "Yeah, I dunno what it was, but somethin' inside me clicked. Like when yer Tuna Substitute super soaked my circuits…the Pred wanted the get outta that situation so bad, I kinda…woke up, y'know? He got so scared, and angry and confused. That way, I was strong enough to sorta, push him out. And, well, here I am…"

"So you're saying, we have to give all our comrades a near death experience in the hope they'll get pissed off?" Spanner asked, placing a hand on his hip.

"That about sums it up, yeah,"

"Hm. That poses a problem," Optimus observed, scratching his head. He ignored the anonymous 'No duh' and thought it over, "We'll have to meet wit Greyback and the others. In other words, we're going to have to get out of here."

"Leave that to the Rattrap," the rat stated confidently.

…

……

…

Jaggid fidgeted with her bonds. The harder she pulled, the tighter and more intense they became, but she persisted. Her three wardens were off somewhere, obviously plotting some clever way to coax her out of her hosts' body. Fat chance.

After what seemed like hours, she mustered her strength and pulled the energy bonds apart. Gasping silently from the effort, she brought her aching arms around in front of her and rubbed her wrists.

At last she was free again. Though she would like to pick a fight with those cocky Maximals, she had to get going. So she slinked silently away into the forest.

Once she was a reasonable distance away, she opened up her com-link.

"Jaggid to Drifter, answer me," she demanded. A few seconds later, the camel responded.

"Yes?"

"We need to have a meeting, soon…" she began, but she was interrupted.

"We know," Drifter answered her dryly, thinking she had forgotten already, "One megacycle, Sector2, Rattrap told us."

"What?"

"Yes, he said 'the Boss' called a meeting."

"Did he?" Jaggid cooed suspiciously, "Fine. Go to the meeting, and make sure everyone is there. We'll be ready for whatever these Maximals have planned."

She turned off her communicator and set off in beast mode in the direction of the Predacon base. From the leaves in the tree above, Greyback's voice could faintly be heard through Skylark's com-link.

"Did she go for it?"

"Yup. We're on…"

…

……

…

"Jaggid to Blockade, come in,"

"FINALLY!" an angry voice bellowed over the com-link, causing the black leopard to wince, "Where are you? I've been stuck with these bozos on my own for six freakin' megacycles!!"

"Alright, alright, watch that tone. I think we have a problem…"

"No slag! These freaks of Cybertronian nature have been badgering me all day! Do you realise how painful it is to have a so-called 'conversation' with a bunch of inbred insectoids? I swear, if we weren't about to…"

"OI! Talking here! We're having a change of plans,"

"What? and you were planning on telling me when?" the mammoth huffed.

"Back off, I've only just devised it. Rattrap didn't report back to you, did he?"

"No, he's been gone longer than you. What the slag happened anyway? They're all asking me. ME! What do I know, I don't even know, or care, where their flying rat Donna went…"

"My point is…" Jaggid interrupted sternly, getting more and more fed up, "…apparently, Rattrap relayed a message to the Iniquities from the Boss."

"Yeah, so? …Oh, wait. You're the Boss…you didn't know?"

"Hence the 'apparently'…" the leopard replied exasperatedly, pinching the ridge of her nose, "We're going to have to limit when we talk to each other" she added in a murmer.

"Soooo…what do we do? Is it the Maximals? Or is he up to his old tricks again?"

"Undecided as of yet," Jaggid replied, "We'll have to play it by ear. Now get moving, we've got one megacycle to get to Sector 2…"

…

……

…

Sector 2 slowly saw a precession of arriving Predacons, all rather confused. Rattrap braced himself and followed at the back of the small crowd that left Pangaea One, constantly checking behind his to see if the Maximal 'rescue party', as it were, were at a safe distance behind them.

Inside the mountain, Serpentia hissed loudly and cursed outwardly now that the Iniquity Units had left.

"The nerve of them! What right do they possssesss to hold ssssuch a meeting?!" she ranted, pacing up and down. There were a few mutters of agreement. "I cannot wait to get out of thissss Maximal moussssehole and get back to where we belong…"

"That can certainly be arranged," came a deep voice from behind them. The serpent gulped and swung around on her heel.

"Who…?" she stammered, looking a long way up at a face she did not recognise.

"Am I?" Saggitare finished for her, towering over her threateningly, "I am positive you will not be staying here much longer…"

He reared up and pinned the former Predacon lieutenant to the ground. Though shocked and winded, she managed to shout, "Predacons, attack!"

However, the Predacons did not anticipate all the Maximals they had captive to be out of their cage…and ready to fight. Fuelled by their rage, the Maximals swiftly dealt with the squatters.

…

……

…

Two megacycles had passed. Six Predacons awaited their comrades.

"What's this about?" Eradicator (Shellshock) demanded the leopard femme.

"You'll see," Jaggid replied. _So will I_, she added to herself.

Rattrap then arrived having checked his Maximal group were still out of sight. There was now only one Predacon missing…

"Where is Peruvia?" Hellcat (Caricaal) enquired the rat as he jogged towards them.

"Huh? Oh, uh," Rattrap shrugged as non-chalantly as he could, "she's gonna be late, tryin' teh keep Kahn's goons in order while we're away,"

"Good," Jaggid said, a little to Rattrap's surprise, "let's get down to business anyhow, shall we?"

She paced in front of her troope, hands behind her back.

"We have a problem," she began slowly, "As you all well know, the Maximals have discovered our identities, or rather that we are not who they think we are. But that's not the problem. If only it was. I believe…we have a traitor in our midst…"

Immediately, every weapon was drawn and turned untrustingly on one another.

"Well well well, I see we're all on our toes about this one," Jaggid said amusedly. Suddenly, all guns were pointed at her. She very slowly clapped her hands sarcastically, "Oh, yes, very well done. It's nice to see that the top minds in espionage put their heads to good use."

"And how are we to know it is not you?" Drifter sneered, his weapon pointed between the optics.

"Because I did not call this meeting," she explained slowly, "and I demand to know why it was called at all without my consent."

"Because you ain't the boss of us," Rattrap stepped forward defiantly, inwardly praying he knew what he was doing. Jaggid glared at him. "Yeah," he continued as confidently as he could, "you ain't the real boss anyway, are ya?"

He was winging it. He didn't know if that was true or not, he couldn't actually remember. It seemed to be working, as Jaggid started to shuffle uncomfortably.

"You fools!" a voice cried from the edge of the crowd. Everyone turned to see Peruvia, two blast holes in her chest and a look of pure murder on her face. "They planned this! And you fell for it. You fools!" she repeated aggressively, "I should have taken over long ago!"

"Oh, so it was **you** I should have been worried about!" Jaggid exclaimed ferociously.

"Actually, it's us you oughta be worried about," said Rattrap. They al stared at him. "NOW!" he yelled at the top of his voice.

The ambush party of Maximals that consisted of Greyback, Optimus, Rhinox, Skylark, Spanner, Moonhawk, Wildcat and Accinon suddenly jumped out of hiding, taking the Predacons by surprise.

"Traitor!" Blockade yelled at Rattrap.

"Not exactly," the rat replied slyly, disabling the holographic disguise, and revealing his own colours again.

The battle ensued, with ducks and weaves between bullets and swinging fists. Blockade had cornered Greyback and was about to knock him out with one of her painful punches, but all of a sudden she was knocked sideways by a blackish green blur. It was Serpentia.

"Have I missed something?" the wolf enquired, utterly confused.

"I fffffollowed Peruvia oncccce your Maxxximalssss kicked ussss out. Even [b]**I**[/b] know there'sssss a limit to getting information from victimssssss…every now and then you need them in one pieccccce."

"Wait, why are you helping us?" Greyback asked the serpent.

"I am not helping you!" Serpentia spat viciously, "I ssssssimply wisssshh thesssse ssssscum gone. And if allowing your plan to proccccceed as planned allocatessss that, then ssssssso be it."

"And what about your precious leader?"

The Predacon stared for a moment. "What he doesssssn't know won't hurt him…"

Skylark considered it, then nodded, and proceeded with rounding the iniquities up like a herd of sheep with their temporary ally.

At last, and only by means of outnumbering gunfire, all eight Iniquity units stood in a huddle, surrounded by a circle of their former comrades and Serpentia).

"If you're trying to threaten us, it won't work!" jeered Hellcat nervously trying to hide her anxiety, "We've been through much worse."

"No. We're not here to threaten you…" Greyback began.

"Why didn't you say so, Greyback?" Jaggid asked calmly with a malicious grin, "You're obviously desperate, so let's hear it…" She shot him a quick wink, at which he twitched.

"Nor are we here to negotiate," he announced firmly. He saw the leopard's ears prick once each, and Strider started cowing the ground. He recognised those tendencies. Their plan must be working…the Iniquities must be getting nervous.

"There's no point denying it. You said so yourself. They're gone. But if we can't get them back, we can at least avenge them…"

"You wouldn't…" Peruvia stammered, and she actually sounded anxious. Greyback shook his head.

"You've left us no choice. Optimus?" He signalled to the optimal gorilla to flick the switch. With as much visual remorse as he could muster, he pulled the lever. To him, the situation seemed real. Anything could happen; everything could go wrong. What if they called his bluff, and allowed their hosts to be destroyed? Though that was the worst case scenario, Optimus knew he would never be able to forgive himself. And he doubted Greyback would either. But the wolf showed great resilience in following his instincts, and Optimus admired that.

When the lever was pulled, a huge surge of electric energy filled the circle. Each Maximal held one of Skylark's experimental devices for creating an emergency power supply. The current started passing from the owl's catalyst device and passed through each device in the circle, and once a circuit was created the light shot into the centre.

After 30 nano clicks, Optimus disabled the device. A few of the smaller Predacons were on their knees, like Strider and Hellcat, the rest were doubled over.

"Is that all you've got?" jeered Peruvia, leaning on her knees, shaking violently.

Optimus restarted the device reluctantly. This time, everyone could hear them screaming in agony.

"Stop it!" a few f them pleaded but many demanded.

Primal stopped and started it again, the pain obviously getting more severe. He looked over at a few of the Maximals, and he could see that they too thought this plan was ethically flawed.

During the fourth surge, something started to happen. Just like it had with Rattrap, the joints and sockets of the Iniquities began to glow white. They all simultaneously dropped to their knees and thrust their arms and head back. There was a symphony of screams, but not of pain: of frustration and rage.

"Get out!" the Maximals in the centre chorused.

Convinced that enough was enough, Optimus turned off the device. The white energy left their hosts, who dropped into heaps on the ground.

But before anyone of their comrades could rush to help them, the entities of energy accumulated above the circle of fallen Maximals. It became one energy, and it started to pulsate as if it were a living body. Then, without warning, it imploded, sending a shockwave through the still-standing Maximals, knocking them backwards. The entity broke up again into separate clouds of eerie white mist and began to advance on their new prey.

"NO!"

The former Iniquities were standing again, their true colours restored to them, the Maximal twinkle back in their eyes. They looked exhausted, but they stood firm and resilient.

"No more," Jagna breathed, a fresh dose of rage fuelling her, "you're finished…"

Her Maximals stood behind her, enforcing her statement. They would be controlled no longer. The Iniquity energy balls advanced on them now, and attempted to re-enter their caskets…

But when they hit them, the Maximals stood firm and the white mist disappeared.

An eerie silence swept the crowd. Every unit was on tenderhooks with bated breath as they waited to see what would happen.

After a moment or two, the stillness was broken when Shellshock dropped back onto his knees, not from exhaustion or pain, but sheer relief. He sighed, and their was a smile on his face.

His relief swept throughout the whole group, and they were no longer hesitant to run to their friends. There were many embraces, mostly out of joy to have them back, but also to catch them as they buckled.

Greyback slowly walked reluctantly over to Serpentia, who was standing very still, watching the Maximals with an odd look on her face. "What will you tell Kahn?" he asked her.

"He had his sussssspicions about them," Serpentia commented, looking to her left at where the recovering Maximals lay, "didn't think they were ssssstable."

"Thank you…" Greyback managed to mumble. Saying it felt like pushing boulders through his teeth.

"Thissssss meansssss nothing."

She transformed into beast mode and quickly slithered off into the night.

_If only I agreed_, Greyback thought. He shrugged it off, and went to help his comrades return to base.

…

……

…

The Maximals had claimed their base back, and were at last reunited. And though the feeling of relief and joy were defiantly present, there was an uncomfortable undertone to the celebrations. Friends stood side by side in Pangaea One, eyeing each other up and down, as not an hour ago they had tried to kill one another.

There were one or two distractions, however, to temporarily take everyone's mind off what had just happened. One of them was the newest member of the group, Saggitare. Skylark and Rhinox had taken particular interest in him.

"This is why I prefer my solitude," he sighed regretfully as they gawked at his carbon-metallic components. Skylark quickly closed her aping mouth and apologised.

"I'm sorry, but this…you…are so incredible! I've tried for years to create this kind of mergence so we could further understand our beast modes…how…how…how did you…do you know how you came to be like this?" She was becoming breathlessly excited, and thankfully, rather than taking it personally, Saggitare smiled amusedly.

"I'm afraid I have been like this for as long as I can remember. I cannot help you there…"

Her face dropped slightly, "Oh…"

"But if you like, I will happily assist you in any other way I can. I was always afraid I would be prodded and poked and examined like an experiment, but if you think I might one day be able to help you, then I am at your service," He bent his front leg and bowed lightly. Skylark giggled coyly.

Elsewhere in the room, Nightshaft was being tended to after being put in the CR chamber during the battle. Shellshock sat next to her.

"You left me in here? Aw, man…" she exclaimed as Moonhawk prodded her arm, "How can I be sure that everyone's back to normal then, huh?"

"You're just gonna have to trust us, Blackie," Shellshock answered with a small laugh.

"Really?" the primate replied, unconvinced, "Well, I'm sorry, but trust isn't exactly an easy thing to get around here…" She shot a nasty look at Jagna, who was taken aback by her insinuation. Shellshock meanwhile, looked rather hurt.

"You have to understand, Nightshaft, it wasn't us," the leopard tried to explain.

"And you have to understand, it's a little hard for me to take in!" Nightshaft shot back, pointing at her still-injured arm, "Come on…you'd feel the same…"

The tortoise mech stood up slowly and walked away, pretending he had something to do. Immediately, Nightshaft regretted what she said, and stared after her best friend hopelessly.

"Make sure she gets her rest," Jagna instructed Moonhawk distractedly.

…

……

…

Jagna left the tense atmosphere of the control centre and headed for her quarters. As she passed through one of the long residence hallways, she noticed Greyback's door was ajar. He was very fussy about his privacy, so she wondered what would compel him to leave it open.

She moved to close it, but saw him sitting on his bed, facing away from the door, slouching terribly. She considered leaving him be, but she could tell immediately there was something troubling him. Something **other** than the fact that not two megacycles ago she and the others were Predacons.

She quietly slipped through the gap and closed the door behind her. His ears pricked. He didn't look at who had entered but kept his eyes on the floor.

"Grey?" she asked tentatively. He ignored her, pretending not to acknowledge her presence.

She considered leaving almost straight away, but something glued her to the spot. She stood firm, and asked stupidly, "Something wrong?"

She winced when he heard him laugh hoarsely. _Of course there's something wrong, you idiot_, she scorned herself.

"Nothing," he finally said after a whole minute of silence, "Everything is…fine now."

"Now?" she asked slowly, "What was wrong before?"

"Gee, I dunno," he muttered, shrugging overtly, "something to do with the latest fiasco, perhaps?"

She huffed. She was not in the mood for one of his moods. But she said nothing.

He struggled with the words he wanted to express to her. He shuffled uncomfortably as he tried to string them together.

"I didn't mean what I said to you before…" he stammered uneasily.

"Yes you did," she stated coolly with her arms folded.

He coughed awkwardly. "I just…I dunno, I thought that…"

It was difficult to find the words to explain himself. 'Spur of the moment' wouldn't do, as she had already caught him out. He did mean it. But not in the way she thought…

"It shouldn't have been your fault," he continued, hoping that he made some lick of sense, "…If it had been me…instead of you…I don't deny I think about that a lot…"

She tilted her head. She guessed as much, but never thought she'd hear him admit it.

"But the last few days have shown me…I could never have done what you have. So whatever fault you may have had, mine would've surmounted it tenfold. I guess I'm saying; I'm glad you're the one we're following…"

All the while he remained sitting on his bed while she slowly made her way to stand a few metres next to him. She could see the discomfort on his face as he spoke…but when he said that last part, Jagna could not help but laugh.

He raised his head to look at her, astonished.

"You're laughing…" he stated blankly, still unable to believe it, "Why are you laughing?"

Stifling a light chuckle, she replied, "You're unbelievable, Grey. Un. Believable."

He was dumbstruck, and a little insulted. "Why…?"

"All these years…and you didn't say a thing to me…Then again, I'm one to talk…"

"What do you mean?"

"You're a surprising person, Greyback. Ever since the day we met, you've surprised me in some way or other. But what surprised me the most, was that … you agreed to follow **me**."

He tilted his head, "What?"

She continued slowly, "Come on, Grey. I always thought [b]**you**[/b] would be the one to lead us. To this day, I don't know why you lot chose me over you. Every day I wonder what would have happened if you were in charge. I can't help but think…believe…that things might have been better…for everyone…"

Her voice trailed off and she lowered her head. She dropped onto the end of the bed.

"Why did you?" she asked him quietly.

"Why did I follow you," Grey asked back for confirmation. She nodded. "Well, let's see…I can't tell you, because I don't think I know for sure. When we met, I thought you were going to eat me, remember?" They both laughed wearily. He lowered his head again, staring at his hands, "I knew somehow…that things would be…better for everyone in the long run…if we had you to lead us…"

They finally caught each other's eyes. They stared at each other in disbelief. In all the years they had known each other, neither knew that the other thought exactly what they did.

After what felt like minutes, Greyback sharply turned his head away.

"What?" Jagna asked.

"These last few days have been…" He paused, "…We thought we'd lost you guys…"

His voice was quiet, barely audible, like he almost didn't want to say it, or her to hear it.

"…**I** thought I'd lost **you**…"

He was staring at the wall, so he didn't notice that she had edged closer to him. He felt her hand on his cheek and she gently turned his face towards hers. She gazed intensely into his big, yellow optics.

"You didn't lose me."

Time seemed to slow down for both of them. They leaned in towards one another, their optics slowly fading as they inched closer. The pair embraced each other gently as their lips met.

The two of them felt a great weight lift off their shoulders as they kissed. For that moment, the world stood still.


End file.
